Department for Transport

Electric Scooters

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the impact of e-scooters on (a) driving licence and (b) insurance requirements.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport is currently considering options for future regulations for rental and private e-scooters. It will consult before any new arrangements come into force, and all interested parties will have a chance to shape the new regime.Currently, third-party insurance is provided to users by e-scooter operators in the national trials, and users must also have a provisional driving licence.

Bus Services: Regulation

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to make regulations under the Bus Services Act 2017 in the next year.

Mr Richard Holden: Yes. We plan to use powers introduced through the Bus Services Act 2017 to make the Accessible Information Regulations, requiring the provision of audible and visible information on local bus and coach services across Great Britain.

East Coast Main Line

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 26 January 2023 to Question 129879 on Railways: Midlands and North of England, what assessment the Department has made of the potential impact on (a) services and (b) passengers at intermediate stations on the East Coast Mainline of (a) no longer being served and (b) receiving a reduced service as a result of the changes.

Huw Merriman: As previously confirmed in the response to question 129879, detailed timetabling work for the Integrated Rail Plan will be conducted at a later stage of project development. Once developed, an updated East Coast Main Line timetable specification would be subject to public consultation.

Bus Services: Disability

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he is taking steps to increase the provision of audio-visual announcements on local bus services for blind and partially sighted people.

Mr Richard Holden: We plan to require the provision of audible and visible information on local bus and coach services across Great Britain and intend to introduce the Accessible Information Regulations shortly.

Project Silverlight and Operation Blue Diamond

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what is the (a) scope, (b) workstreams and (c) objectives of (i) Project Silverlight and (ii) Operation Blue Diamond.

Huw Merriman: Project Silverlight and Project Blue Diamond are the titles of ongoing HS2 Ltd work to develop options with the Department for Transport on how the programme is phased and delivered.

Bus Services

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many FTE civil servants in his Department work on bus services.

Mr Richard Holden: As of 1 February 2023, The Department for Transport has 88.61 FTE civil servants working on bus policy, delivery of the National Bus Strategy, the Bus Open Data Digital Service, operational grant payments and associated analytical work.

Parking: Disability

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals for enforceable disabled parking bays in residential roads.

Mr Richard Holden: The law already provides for enforceable disabled parking bays on residential roads. Enforcement authorities may issue penalties to the registered keepers of vehicles parked in such bays when not displaying a valid Blue Badge.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of (a) potholes and (b) instances of other road damage; what estimate he has made of the additional resources that would be required to fix them; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Richard Holden: Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. It is for each local authority to decide how best to do this and it is for local decision makers to determine how to prioritise local spending. At the recent Autumn Statement, the Chancellor confirmed the three-year settlement announced at Spending Review 2021; approximately £915 million capital funding per year for local highways maintenance. This funding is for eligible English local authorities outside of London and the mayoral combined authorities in receipt of City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS).  Well-planned maintenance to prevent potholes and other defects from forming in the first place is vital, and the Department for Transport advocates a risk-based, whole life-cycle asset management approach to all aspects of the local highway network. The Department also encourages good practice in highway maintenance for all local highway authorities and endorses the UK Roads Leadership Group’s Code of Practice; ‘Well Managed Highway Infrastructure’.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Disease Control

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January to Question 13189 on Disease Control, how many mobile UV irradiation units have been purchased; and to which locations have they been deployed.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has purchased two mobile UV irradiation units, which were deployed at its main London building at 1 Victoria Street.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Recruitment

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much his Department has spent on headhunters in each of the last three years.

Kevin Hollinrake: This information is not held centrally and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Foreign Companies: Registration

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the level of compliance with the Register of Overseas Entities; and what compliance action will be taken with firms who do not meet the deadline.

Kevin Hollinrake: In July 2022, an estimated 32,000 overseas entities were required to register. At the end of 31 January 2023, 19,665 had registered with Companies House and more than 5,000 applications were received but not yet processed. Where there is continued non-compliance these entities can be liable for criminal offences and financial penalties and will find it difficult to sell, lease or raise charges over their land until they are compliant. Companies House will accept applications received after the deadline to achieve greater transparency Companies House will work with partners, including land registries and law enforcement, to prepare cases for enforcement.

Energy Information Regulations 2011/1524

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Retained EU Law Bill, whether he plans to (a) revoke, (b) retain or (c) replace the Energy Information Regulations 2011/1524.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Information Regulations 2011/1524 establish the compliance and enforcement regime for energy labels in the UK. Energy labels provide easy-to-understand information on the energy efficiency of products allowing consumers to identify the least and most efficient products. The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy is reviewing all REUL in line with usual policy development to determine whether to repeal, replace or preserve it.

Animal Experiments

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of the need for a ministerial portfolio for eradicating the use of animals in laboratory experiments.

George Freeman: The Government continues to actively support and fund the development and dissemination of the 3Rs (replacement, reduction and refinement) for the use of animals in scientific procedures. This is achieved through UK Research and Innovation’s funding of the National Centre for the 3Rs, which works nationally and internationally to drive the uptake of non-animal technologies, and through research into the development of alternatives by Innovate UK, the Medical Research Council, and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.The Government is committed to the development of alternatives to using animals in scientific procedures and to avoiding unnecessary suffering and I am the Minister with lead responsibility in this area.

Energy Bills Rebate: Telephone Services

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2023 to Question 132590, whether households that do not have a traditional relationship with an electricity supplier could be identified by comparing the data sets held by the Electricity Central Online Enquiry Service with the Valuation Office Agency’s register of all domestic properties in England.

Graham Stuart: Based on current understanding of the Valuation Office Agency's register, the Government believes that comparing these two datasets is likely to produce an incomplete list of households eligible for the EBSS Alternative Funding in England, as it may omit certain eligible households. Officials will undertake further work to ascertain the viability of this approach.

Geothermal Power

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will take steps to implement a national framework to incentivise and manage exploration and production of geothermal heat.

Graham Stuart: The 2021 Heat and Buildings Strategy acknowledges the potential of geothermal energy and sets out the Government’s commitment to monitor developments in geothermal heat in the UK and assess whether the technology provides a cost-effective option for the future. BEIS is currently supporting a project led by the British Geological Survey to clearly outline the opportunities and barriers for geothermal heat in the UK. When complete, officials will closely review the findings before evaluating next steps.

Refuges: Energy

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2023 to Question 131224 on Refuges: Energy, what metrics his Department has used to asses the adequacy of the packages of support for energy bills for domestic abuse refuges.

Graham Stuart: The Government has conducted a review of the operation of the Energy Bill Relief Schemes and it considered a range of qualitative and quantitative evidence, including input from businesses and stakeholders. As part of the review, BEIS developed a framework to assess which sectors may be most affected by rising energy prices based on financial vulnerability, energy intensity and ability to pass through costs. The results of this were used alongside results from a business survey conducted by BEIS, inputs from other government departments, and wider economic and public policy considerations, to support ministerial decision-making.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether alternative support is available for households which previously qualified for the Warm Home Discount but which are ineligible this year because they are unable to provide data on the energy performance of their accommodation.

Graham Stuart: The Government uses Valuation Office Agency data on property characteristics to identify households living in properties estimated to have high heating costs. If a household believes this property characteristic data is inaccurate and wants to provide alternative information, they will need an Energy Performance Certificate. Energy suppliers can provide additional support to households through the Industry Initiatives element of the scheme, including financial assistance. This support can be provided irrespective of whether a household is eligible for a rebate.

Green Homes Grant Scheme: Coventry

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many jobs the Green Homes Grant has supported in (a) Coventry North East constituency and (b) Coventry.

Graham Stuart: An evaluation of the effectiveness of the voucher scheme, including analysis of scheme outcomes and evidence collected from scheme applicants and other stakeholders, is being undertaken by an independent research organisation. The interim findings, which relate to the delivery of the scheme and the early benefits to households, were published on 26th January 2023 ( https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/green-homes-grant-voucher-scheme-evaluation). The final phase of the evaluation will assess the effect of the Green Homes Grant Voucher Scheme on jobs at national level with findings available in late 2023.

Energy: Billing

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what data his Department holds on the average timescales energy consumers wait for the repayment of debt owed to them by failed energy suppliers, in particular when payments have been made to energy suppliers through standing orders.

Graham Stuart: The Department does not hold this data. The Supplier of Last Resort process, which can by triggered by an energy supplier exiting the market, is managed by Ofgem.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an estimate of the number of people who were eligible for the Warm Home Discount in 2022 and are not eligible in 2023 with no change to their circumstances.

Graham Stuart: The Government has expanded the Warm Home Discount scheme this year, providing £150 rebates to over 3 million households. The Government published impact assessments when consulting and publishing the Government’s response, which compared the option for reforming the scheme to continuing the previous scheme. As households previously applied through their suppliers, which set their own application processes and eligibility criteria and selected successful applicants each year, the Government has not been able to assess how many households previously eligible are no longer eligible.

Energy Bills Rebate: Park Homes

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, by what date he expects the Energy Bill Relief Scheme payment to be made, in relation to residents of Park Homes.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Bill Support Scheme alternative funding portal on gov.uk will open on or by Monday 27th February.

Electricity: Prices

Philip Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy., what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of fluctuations in the rate of electricity market pricing per megawatt hour in the last 10 years; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of inflation on those rates.

Graham Stuart: BEIS carries out regular monitoring of the wholesale market price to inform policy. Ofgem regularly publish data on wholesale electricity market prices.As has widely been noted, the recent increase in electricity market prices has largely been driven by an increase in the wholesale market price for gas as a result of Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, as opposed to wider inflation.

Housing: Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what proportion of domestic properties in (a) York local authority, (b) Yorkshire and the Humber and (c) England are deemed to have high modelled energy costs based on the property’s characteristics of (i) type, (ii) age and (iii) floor area.

Graham Stuart: The table below provides the proportion of domestic properties calculated to have a high energy cost score based on Valuation Office Agency and, where missing, imputed property characteristic data for the 2022/23 scheme year: AreaProportion with a high energy cost scoreYork local authority48%Yorkshire and the Humber50%England50%

Electricity Generation: Infrastructure

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to take steps to increase the (a) grid and (b) local cable capacities in order to better facilitate (i) more electric cars in the UK and (b) demand for domestic heating.

Graham Stuart: The Government is committed to accelerating the delivery of electricity network infrastructure to accommodate new sources of clean electricity generation and demand, as set out, jointly with Ofgem, in the Electricity Networks Strategic Framework.Ofgem’s upcoming distribution network price control provides £22.2bn in baseline funding including £3.1bn for network upgrades, supporting the expected uptake in electric vehicles and heat pumps. Large upfront funding, combined with an agile price control system for net zero related expenditure, should enable the investment in network infrastructure needed to facilitate heat and transport electrification.

Energy: Meters

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to ensure that households unable to get energy smart meters are not (a) disadvantaged or (b) prevented from achieving the best energy rates when seeking the services of an energy provider.

Graham Stuart: The Government wants households and small businesses to benefit from smart metering as soon as possible. The vast majority of consumers can now have a smart meter. The rollout is making good progress, with 54% of gas and electricity meters across Great Britain now smart. The Government has introduced minimum annual installation targets for energy suppliers. The Data Communications Company (DCC), which operates the national communications infrastructure for smart metering, is obligated under its licence to provide communications coverage to at least 99.25% of premises across Great Britain. In addition, the DCC is also required to assess opportunities to increase the overall level of coverage where it is practicable and cost proportionate.

Meters: Energy

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to increase the number of rural households which are able to have an energy smart meter installed.

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of properties (a) Preseli Pembrokeshire constituency, (b) Wales and (c) the UK that are unable to have an energy smart meter installed.

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he is taking steps to make alternative measures available for rural households who are unable to have a Smart Meter.

Graham Stuart: The Government wants as many households and small businesses as possible to benefit from smart metering, and millions of consumers across Great Britain, in different types of geographies, are already realising these benefits. The Data Communications Company (DCC), which operates the national communications infrastructure for smart metering, is obligated under its licence to provide communications coverage to at least 99.25% of premises across Great Britain. The Government holds this data at a Great Britain level and is not able to disaggregate at constituency or individual nation level. In addition, the DCC is also required to assess opportunities to increase the overall level of coverage where it is practicable and cost proportionate.

Business: Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of his proposed energy package from April 2023 on (a) hospitality, (b) retail and (C) all other types of business.

Graham Stuart: The new Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) will run from April until March 2024 and will continue to provide a discount to eligible businesses. An HMT led review into the operation of the current Energy Bill Relief Schemes was conducted with the objective of significantly reducing the overall burden on the taxpayer/public finances, and ensuring support is targeted at those most in need and unable to adjust to recent energy price rises. The review considered a range of qualitative and quantitative evidence, including input from businesses and stakeholders. The new scheme strikes a balance between supporting non-domestic customers and limiting taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets, with a cap set at £5.5 billion.

UK Infrastructure Bank

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 114600 on UK Infrastructure Bank, what recent discussions his Department has had with the UK Infrastructure Bank on the introduction of concessional loans similar to those made by the German KfW bank to help create a retrofit mass-market.

Graham Stuart: BEIS officials have discussed a range of green finance models for retrofit with the UK Infrastructure Bank in recent months. This has included discussion of the concessional loans model delivered by KfW.

Energy: Meters

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to (a) prevent and (b) regulate energy companies from forcibly installing prepayment meters in homes.

Graham Stuart: Prepayment meters (PPMs) allow customers to pay for energy on a pay-as-you-go basis and serve an important function by helping the avoidance of debt and court action. A ban on PPM switching as a last resort could lead to an increase in bailiff action. There are no plans to remove this option. Ofgem has stringent rules on the force-fitting of PPMs and have recently published a letter where they outline steps they will be taking on tackling inappropriate supplier PPM practises including making sure suppliers are complying with those rules.

Energy: Meters

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that people on pre-payment meters who have not yet redeemed their Energy Bills Support Scheme vouchers will be able to do so.

Graham Stuart: The Government works with suppliers to communicate the Energy Bills Support Scheme and the importance of customers checking post, emails and text for prepayment meter vouchers and taking action to redeem them. Suppliers have an obligation to make a minimum of three attempts by at least two different methods (post, email, text, special action message) to contact customers who have not redeemed their voucher. Vouchers are valid for 90 days. Replacement vouchers can be issued but all vouchers must be redeemed by 30 June 2023.

Energy: Conservation

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 114599 on Energy: Conservation, what his planned timetable is for announcing how the additional £6 billion of new funding for energy efficiency will be allocated.

Graham Stuart: Almost £3bn is already allocated for Financial Years 2023/24 and 2024/25 on energy efficiency.This provides funding certainty to the sector ahead of the next Spending Review.Further details on allocation of the additional funding will follow in due course.

Renewable Energy: Finance

Philip Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to provide a budget framework for Contracts for Difference auctions over the next 5 years.

Graham Stuart: BEIS has set clear overall ambitions for renewables deployment to 2030 and beyond. Contracts for Difference Budgets are determined on a round by round basis based on requirements set out in the Energy Act 2013. In 2017, HM Treasury set out the Control for Low Carbon Levies which provides a budget framework for low carbon levies including Contracts for Difference.

Energy Company Obligation: Park Homes

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of park home households who are eligible for grant support under the ECO4 scheme.

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many park home households have received grant support for energy efficiency installations under the ECO4 scheme.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Company Obligation scheme (covering Great Britain) has been one of the Government’s key domestic energy efficiency policies, improving 2.4 million homes since it began in 2013. The Government estimates that under ECO4, around 800,000 measures may be installed in around 450,000 households, including 155,000 households with EPC ratings of E, F or G by March 2026. While park home households are within the scope of ECO4, the Government does not hold estimates of how many are eligible for support under the scheme. Under ECO4, which began in April 2022, 1 park home household had been in receipt of energy efficiency measures by the end of September 2022.

Energy Company Obligation: Wales

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households have been awarded funding for energy efficiency installations under the ECO4 scheme in (a) Ceredigion constituency and (b) Wales.

Graham Stuart: BEIS estimates that under the ECO4 scheme, 48 households have had measures installed in Ceredigion constituency and 398 households have had measures installed in Wales, to the end of September 2022.

Energy Company Obligation

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many ECO4 installations have been (a) approved for funding and (b) completed since June 2022.

Graham Stuart: As ECO is not a Government grant, but an obligation placed upon larger energy suppliers to install energy efficiency and heating measures in the homes of low-income and vulnerable households, it is the decision of ECO-obligated suppliers to determine which installations they contract for and approve. Government does not get involved with the private contractual decisions of these parties and does not know how much funding has been approved. BEIS publishes information on the number of ECO4 installations by month in Table 2.5b accompanying the latest Household Energy Efficiency Statistics release.

Housing: Energy

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he will take to improve the energy efficiency of UK homes.

Graham Stuart: The Government is investing £6.6 billion over this parliament on decarbonising heat and energy efficiency. In addition, the Energy Company Obligation Scheme is in its fourth iteration which will run until 2026 with a value of £4 billion. ECO + has also been announced, worth £1 billion and will run from Spring 2023. The Autumn Statement set out a new ambition to reduce final energy consumption from buildings and industry by 15% by 2030. To support this, a new Energy Efficiency Taskforce will be established. £6 billion of additional funding will also be made available from 2025 to 2028.

Energy Efficiency Taskforce

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Energy Efficiency Taskforce is operational; and if he will publish the membership of that taskforce.

Graham Stuart: More details on the launch and membership of the Taskforce will be announced in due course.

Leisure and Swimming Pools: Energy Bills Discount Scheme

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of not including (a) swimming pools and (b) other leisure services in the list of sectors eligible for support with energy bills under the Energy and Trade Intensive Industries scheme on the financial viability of (i) charitable trust not-for-profit leisure and (ii) swimming pool providers.

Graham Stuart: During the review of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme, analysis of many contributions from the private sector, trade associations, the voluntary sector and other types of organisations were assessed. These included leisure centres and swimming pools. The Government has taken a consistent approach to identifying the most energy and trade intensive sectors, with all sectors that meet agreed thresholds for energy and trade intensity eligible for Energy and Trade Intensive Industries support. These thresholds have been set at sectors falling above the 80th percentile for energy intensity, and 60th percentile for trade intensity, plus any sectors eligible for the existing energy compensation and exemption schemes.

Energy Bills Rebate: Park Homes

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the letter sent by the Minister of State for Energy and Climate to all Members on 25 November 2022 entitled Energy Bills Support in Great Britain: Complex Cases, what steps his Department is taking to communicate to affected people the timescale for making those payments to park home residents.

Graham Stuart: On 19 December, the Government publicly announced that the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding (EBSS AF) will launch in 2023 to eligible households in Great Britain. The Government will communicate when the new scheme is live, which is anticipated to be on or before 27th February. It is working closely with stakeholder groups and representative bodies, including park home associations, to update them on progress and ensure those eligible are made fully aware of the scheme and encouraged to apply.

Charities: Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing ongoing support for energy costs to the charity sector; and whether his Department is taking steps to provide that support to charities after March 2023.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that eligible charities are protected from excessively high energy costs over the winter period. Following an HMT-led review into the Energy Bill Relief Scheme, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024 and will continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers including charities. The new scheme strikes a balance between supporting non-domestic customers over the next 12 months and limiting taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets, with a cap set at £5.5 billion.

Energy Bills Rebate

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when he expects to issue guidance on the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding to local authorities to enable them to administer the scheme; for what reason that guidance has not been provided to date; and if he will make a statement.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Bill Support Scheme Alternative Funding is due to be launched in February, and local authorities will be provided with guidance ahead of this launch. Based on feedback from the pilot scheme, the Government has taken the decision to extend the pilot phase to ensure that it makes the scheme as robust and effective as possible, and that this is reflected in our guidance to local authorities.

Business: Energy

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps the Government has taken to ensure that businesses, including hospices, are supported with their energy costs.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that all eligible businesses, including hospices, who receive their energy from licensed suppliers, are protected from high energy costs over the winter period. Following a HMT-led review into the EBRS, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount to all eligible non-domestic customers, including hospices.

Energy: Hospices

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the impact of increases in the cost of energy on hospices.

Graham Stuart: The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) provides discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that all eligible businesses, including hospices, who receive their energy from licensed suppliers, are protected from high energy costs over the winter period. The Government recognises that organisations such as hospices may continue to experience high energy bills which is why the Government will continue to provide support to eligible non-domestic customers including hospices through the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme which will run from April until March 2024. The Government has also made up to £14.1 billion available for health and social care over the next two years.

Energy: Hospices

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of replacing the Energy Bill Relief Scheme with the Energy Bill Discount Scheme on the hospice sector.

Graham Stuart: The new Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers including hospices. An HMT-led review into the operation of the current Energy Bill Relief Schemes was conducted with the objective of significantly reducing the overall burden on the taxpayer and public finances, and ensuring support is targeted at those most in need and unable to adjust to recent energy price rises. The review considered a range of qualitative and quantitative evidence, including input from businesses and stakeholders. The new scheme strikes a balance between supporting non-domestic customers and limiting taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets, with a cap set at £5.5 billion.

Energy: Hospices

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to support hospices with their energy bills after March 2023.

Graham Stuart: The new Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) will run from April until March 2024 and continue to provide a discount on energy bills to eligible non-domestic customers including hospices.

Energy: Prices

James Daly: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect of a potential fall in wholesaleenergyprices on future levels of domesticenergyprices.

Graham Stuart: Despite the recent fall in wholesale energy prices, energy markets remain volatile, and prices are still well above historical norms. Suppliers typically buy energy in advance of when it is delivered and Ofgem determines a maximum price they can charge consumers to recover the cost of this through the price cap. This means there can be a delay between changes in wholesale prices and these being reflected in consumer bills. The Government’s Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) will save a typical household around £900 this winter.

Energy: Newcastle upon Tyne Central

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to prevent energy companies from breaching licence agreements by forcing customers in vulnerable customers in Newcastle Central constituency onto prepayment meters.

Graham Stuart: My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State has written to Ofgem to ask that they do more to make sure suppliers protect vulnerable consumers. This includes revisiting their approach to enforcing supplier compliance, as well as the urgent publication of recent investigations outcomes into vulnerable customers. I also spoke to Ofgem this morning. Ofgem is conducting a review that will focus specifically on self-disconnections, remote switching and forced installations and, the checks and balances companies have around any decision to put a customer on a pre-payment meter. If Ofgem find that suppliers have not taken due care in this process, they will take further legal action against the suppliers.

Energy Bills Rebate: Northern Ireland

Carla Lockhart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much households in Northern Ireland will receive under the Energy Bills Support Scheme.

Graham Stuart: All households in Northern Ireland are receiving a single, one-off £600 payment to help with their energy bills. Payments started on 16 January and are made up of £400 under the Energy Bills Support Scheme Northern Ireland (EBSS NI), and £200 under the Alternative Fuel Payment (AFP) scheme, which goes to all households in Northern Ireland irrespective of how they heat their home. Households without a direct relationship with an electricity supplier will also receive £600. Details will be announced as soon as possible.

Members: Correspondence

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department will respond to the correspondence of 8 December 2022 from the hon. Member for Liverpool Walton on fossil fuels lobbying.

Graham Stuart: I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member. I have received the correspondence and will issue a reply shortly.

Electric Vehicles: Hydrogen

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will conduct a review of the adequacy of the regulatory system for the promotion and development of hydrogen technology.

Graham Stuart: Work is ongoing to ensure that the regulatory system supports the development of a UK hydrogen economy. This includes through the BEIS Hydrogen Regulators Forum and bilateral engagement. The Government will work with industry and regulators to identify, prioritise and implement any changes to the existing framework, including addressing any gaps, to support the growth of the hydrogen economy. BEIS recently consulted on existing regulatory arrangements through a consultation on hydrogen transport and storage infrastructure business models and regulation, and is currently reviewing the submitted responses.

Hydrogen: Supply Chains

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support and develop the hydrogen supply chain in the UK.

Graham Stuart: In July 2022, the Government published the Hydrogen Sector Development Action Plan which sets out actions the Government and industry are taking to support UK supply chains. Actions include improving project visibility and holding ‘Meet the Specifier’ events, designed to increase transparency of project timings and requirements for supply chain companies. Industry will also lead work voluntarily to set levels of ambition for supply chains in UK hydrogen projects.

Northern Ireland Office

Renewable Energy: Northern Ireland

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Contracts for Difference scheme to Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Steve Baker: Energy policy is devolved in Northern Ireland and is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive Department for the Economy. The Contracts for Difference scheme, which applies UK-wide, was not implemented in Northern Ireland. The reasons were set out by the Northern Ireland Executive Minister for the Economy in response to a written question (AQW 3094/17-22) tabled on 3 March 2020 and answered on 19 March 2020. The answer states that the Northern Ireland Executive considered that joining the scheme, which was introduced in Great Britain in 2014, would have placed a guaranteed additional cost burden on Northern Ireland consumers, on top of existing support that consumers already paid for the Renewables Obligations. When the primary legislation for Contracts for Difference was put in place at the outset, provisions were put in place for Northern Ireland to join at a later date if conditions were right. In developing its Energy Strategy, The Path to Net Zero Energy, the Department for the Economy carried out a consultation from December 2019 to March 2020. This consultation asked whether respondents agreed that the Department for the Economy should explore with the UK Government Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy the possibility of extending the Contracts for Difference scheme to Northern Ireland. 92% of respondents answered ‘yes’ to this question and the Northern Ireland Executive’s Energy Strategy, The Path to Net Zero Energy, published in December 2021, confirmed that the Northern Ireland Executive is exploring whether the Contracts for Difference scheme should be extended to Northern Ireland. It is vital that the Northern Ireland Executive is restored, so that locally elected representatives are in place to continue important policy development relating to energy and net zero on behalf of the people of Northern Ireland.

Department of Health and Social Care

Hull Royal Infirmary: Death

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many excess deaths there were at Hull Royal Infirmary in each of the last six months; and what the causes of those deaths were.

Neil O'Brien: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ambulance Services: Mental Health Services

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to ensure there is adequate mental health support available to (a) emergency medical dispatchers and (b) all other staff who work in ambulance control rooms.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Pharmacy

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department has taken to support community pharmacies with (a) growing patient demand and (b) rising operational costs.

Neil O'Brien: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

General Practitioners: Labour Turnover

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the level of retention was for GPs in the NHS in the latest period for which data is available; and if he will make an assessment of the reasons for this level.

Neil O'Brien: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Infant Foods: EU Law

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on the (a) Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula (England) Regulations 2007, (b) Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula (Wales) Regulations 2020, (c) Foods for Specific Groups (Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula) (Scotland) Regulations 2020 and (d) Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Neil O'Brien: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS and Social Services: Mental Health Services

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to announce levels of funding for staff wellbeing hubs for health and social care staff.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ambulance Services: Stockport

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for ambulance services in Stockport constituency in the latest period for which data is available.

Will Quince: The information is not available in the format requested.

Nurses: Recruitment

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress his Department has made on increasing the number of registered nurses in the NHS by 50,000 in England by the end of this Parliament.

Will Quince: We are working hard to ensure there are 50,000 more nurses working in the National Health Service by the end of March 2024 compared with September 2019. We are well on the way towards achieving this aim, with over 38,000 more nurses working in the NHS in November 2022 (latest available data) compared with September 2019.

Nurses: Pay

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of changes to the median nurse’s salary in real terms since 2010.

Will Quince: The table shows the median basic pay per full time equivalent (FTE) for nurses and health visitors and the level of the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) in the 12-months to September 2010 and the 12-months to September 2022. Nurse & Health Visitor Median Basic Pay per FTEAverage CPI Index (2015 = 100)12-months to September 2010£27,18688.712-months to September 2022£34,095118.6Source: NHS Digital Earnings Statistics, Office for National Statistics.Note: Basic pay figures do not include any additional earnings that staff may earn if they work unsocial hours or are in receipt of geographical allowances.Over the period median basic pay per FTE increased by 25.4% while CPI increased by 33.7%

Prescriptions: Pre-payment

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussion he has had with the NHS Business Services Authority on prescription prepayment certificate's being cancelled without notification.

Will Quince: In response to recent correspondence on this issue, the NHS Business Services Authority have confirmed that they do not cancel prescription prepayment certificates (PPCs) without notification. There are some circumstances where an auto-renewal of the annual PPC does not take place, however the PPC holder is notified in advance at the address or email provided.

NHS Trusts: Finance

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many requests for revenue cash support have been made by NHS trusts to NHS England in each of the last five years.

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many requests from NHS trusts for revenue cash support were approved by his Department in each of the last five years.

Will Quince: The Department does not hold data on the number of requests for revenue cash support made by NHS Trusts to NHS England in each of the last five years.NHS England validate the requests they receive based on protecting the continuity of patient services and cash need. The Department will then approve the requests so long as they meet the criteria for revenue cash support as outlined in published departmental guidance, which is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-financing-available-to-nhs-trusts-and-foundation-trustsBelow is a table showing the number of NHS Trusts with approved requests for cash support in each of the last five years. 2017/182018/192019/202020/212021/22Number of trusts in receipt of revenue cash support949782121Note: A trust that is granted support may access the cash in one or more payments.

Carbon Monoxide: Alarms

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to ensure that (a) ambulance staff and (b) other medical staff who visit homes are provided personal alarm equipment to sense carbon monoxide.

Will Quince: No such steps are currently planned by the Department. The provision of safety equipment to National Health Service staff is an operational matter for the NHS.

HIV Infection: Research

David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much from the public purse the Government spent on HIV research and development in (a) 2018, (b) 2019, (c) 2020, (d) 2021 and (e) 2022.

Will Quince: The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), a partner organisation of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, funds research relating to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) across all UKRI councils. The latest spend figures available for research on HIV are as follows:Financial expenditureFunded by2017/182018/192019/202020/212021/22NIHR£8,087,542£5,786,318£6,153,681£7,341,078£8,310,996UKRI*£6,771,301£9,024,753£10,511,516£12,545,525£8,905,895*collated data on expenditure for Medical Research Council (MRC) and Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). This includes payments due for 2022/23 financial year.

NHS Digital: Cybersecurity

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2022 to Question 84943 on NHS Digital: Cybersecurity, what steps he is taking to resolve the cyber incident that continues to impact NHS Digital data.

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2022 to Question 84943 on NHS Digital: Cybersecurity, what steps he has taken to ensure that a similar cyber incident does not occur again.

Will Quince: This incident was not targeted against the National Health Service but against Advanced, a third-party software supplier to the NHS. We have worked closely with Advanced to restore services. The majority of NHS services have now been reconnected and we are supporting the few NHS organisations still undergoing reconnecting. All but one of the affected mental health providers have now been reconnected and are in the restoration phase.The incident has impacted data submission to the Mental Health Services Data Set (MHSDS). The MHSDS monthly publication has been reclassified as experimental statistics to reflect this. Caveats are included on the publication page to warn users when interpreting the data. The NHS Digital data liaison service and data quality teams are in regular communication with providers and continue to monitor the impact on submissions and reporting.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of eligible people under the age of 30 who have received a third covid-19 vaccine in the latest period for which data is available.

Maria Caulfield: We do not hold the information in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following table.RequestedProvided for England AgeNumber in cohortNumber vaccinated with at least three dosesProportionPeople Under 30 who have received a third covid-19 vaccine in the latest period (22 January 2023)25 - Under 304,391,1121,832,42141.7%20 - Under 253,824,3641,558,96540.8%18 - Under 201,394,175422,73630.3%16 - Under 181,405,776181,82312.9%Total11,015,4273,995,94536.3%By 22 January 2023, 36.3% (3,995,945 out of 11,015,427) of all people currently aged between 16 and 30 years old and resident in England had been vaccinated with at least three doses of vaccine.By 22 January 2023, the total number of people aged between five and 29 years old living and resident who have been vaccinated with at least three doses was 4,046,676. We are unable to provide the proportion for under-16s as the eligibility for three doses is not universal in this group and the data for all eligible groups is not held.Source: National flu and COVID-19 surveillance data report: 26 January 2023 (week 4) including up to week 3 data: This data is published by age groups in Table 60 and can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports-2022-to-2023-season underhttps://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1131879/Weekly_Influenza_and_COVID19_report_data_w4_report.ods

General Practitioners

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of GPs (a) retiring and (b) leaving the profession in each of the last five years.

Neil O'Brien: As noted in the Government’s response to Question 132452, we remain committed to growing the workforce.The number of general practitioners (GPs) leaving the profession in each of the last five years is shown in the table below.Data on the number of GPs retiring is not held.PeriodFully qualified GP leavers, FTEFully qualified GP leavers, headcountSeptember 2017 - September 20182,6763,891September 2018 - September 20192,4303,546September 2019 - September 20202,2423,385September 2020 - September 20211,9953,095September 2021 - September 20222,3513,657 The data shows GPs who left the cohort workforce between the beginning and end of each specified time period.These figures do not capture GP migration between practices during this period.Note: Due to data quality, a GP recorded as a leaver in these figures may have left one practice and joined another practice with poor data completion. In instances such as this, a GP will be incorrectly recorded as a leaver due to the identifying information no longer being present in the dataset. Conversely, a GP could appear in the practice cohort as a joiner but may have joined from a practice with poor data completion rather than being a new addition to the GP workforce.

Mental Health Services

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he will make a decision on future funding plans for NHS Wellbeing Hubs.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the cost of the NHS staff mental health and wellbeing hubs is.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people have used the NHS staff mental health and wellbeing hubs.

Will Quince: The staff mental health and wellbeing hubs were set up in October 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, using additional non-recurrent funding until the end of 2022/23. A final decision is yet to be made on the funding of these hubs for 2023/24.Data is not held on the cost or usage of the staff mental health and wellbeing hubs.

Members: Correspondence

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare of 17 November 2022 and 16 December 2022 on behalf of his constituent Edmund Bullingham on extra housing care.

Helen Whately: I replied to the hon. Member on 1 February 2023.

Gender Dysphoria: Health Services

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the results of the public consultation on interim service specification for specialist gender dysphoria services for children and young people will be published.

Maria Caulfield: NHS England is currently reviewing and analysing responses and a report summarising all the feedback received will be published on their website in early 2023, alongside the final interim service specification.

Mental Health Services: Out of Area Treatment

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to end out of area placements for mental health patients.

Maria Caulfield: As set out in the NHS Long Term Plan, the Government remains committed to eliminating all inappropriate acute out of area placements for adults, people aged 18 and over.We continue to work closely with NHS England to monitor this. All local areas that still have inappropriate acute out of area placements for adults are required to refresh their local plans to ensure these placements are eliminated everywhere as soon as reasonably possible.Through the NHS Long Term Plan, we are investing an additional £2.3 billion a year by 2023/24 to expand and transform National Health Service mental health services, including community-based services, which will support more people to get the help they need close to home without needing to be admitted as an inpatient.In addition, local areas can include measures to facilitate discharge from mental health inpatient settings when spending their allocation of the £500 million adult social care discharge fund. The additional £200 million for short-term NHS step-down packages and wraparound support announced on 9 January can also be used for these patients where appropriate.

Restraint Techniques: Autism and Learning Disability

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the quality of training on restrictive interventions delivered to providers of inpatient care for people with learning disabilities and autistic people.

Maria Caulfield: There are currently no plans to make this specific assessment.However, we are committed to reducing the use of restrictive practices for inpatients who are autistic and/or have a learning disability, including taking a range of actions to improve staff training on restrictive practices.For example, under section five of the Use of Force Act, the responsible person for each mental health unit must provide training for staff on use of force. Training needs to comply with the Restraint Reduction Network Training Standards 2019, which provide a national benchmark for training, and have been endorsed by a wide range of professional bodies, charities and Government arm’s length bodies.NHS England have commissioned the “HOPE(S)” training model, which is being delivered to embed good practice across inpatient services to reduce the use of long-term segregation and restrictive practices for people with a learning disability and autistic people. The model follows a human-rights based framework and provides person-centred and trauma-informed approaches to working with people in long term segregation and their families, as well as specialist training for staff. The programme's outcomes will be evaluated by an independent research body and the work is subject to a National Oversight Group which meets quarterly to provide governance.

Mental Health Services: Hospital Beds

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2022 to Question 96635 on Mental Health Services: Hospital Beds and with reference to the Answer of 17 June 2021 to Question 11615 on Mental Health Services: Hospital Beds, for what reason information could be provided to Question 11615 and not Question 96635; and how many mental health beds there were in 2021-22.

Maria Caulfield: The data provided in the answer to Question 11615 on 21 June 2021 were annual figures, calculated from quarterly weighted averages. However, with regard to the response given to Question 96635 on 25 November 2022, only quarterly data had been provided. These data were not in the format requested and were therefore not included in the response.NHS England has now advised that there were 18,335 consultant-led mental health beds in the 2021/22 financial year calculated from quarterly weighted averages. NHS England has advised that this figure is not a reliable total for number of mental health beds as it only counts consultant-led beds and increasing numbers of beds are classed as non-consultant-led.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November to Question 88800 on Coronavirus: Vaccination, if he will place in the Library a copy of the clinical data that has been submitted in relation to condition 7 in the table.

Neil O'Brien: A copy of the table and documents that gives the clinical data which was submitted in relation to condition 7 will be deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.

Tourette's Syndrome: South Yorkshire

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision for people with Tourette Syndrome in South Yorkshire.

Helen Whately: The majority of health services for people with Tourette’s syndrome, including in South Yorkshire, are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs are responsible for ensuring there is adequate provision of health services to their populations, subject to local prioritisation and funding.

Carers: Government Assistance

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of support available to unpaid carers.

Helen Whately: Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are required to undertake a Carer’s Assessment for any unpaid carer who appears to have a need for support and to meet their eligible needs on request from the carer.The Health and Care Act 2022 includes provisions for the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to assess the performance of local authorities’ delivery of their adult social care duties, as set out under the Care Act 2014. The CQC have been working with local Government, the care sector and people with care and support needs to develop a framework for these assessments including how to consider local authorities responsibilities to unpaid carers.

Bereavement Counselling

Patricia Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of the UK Commission on Bereavement’s findings that over 40 percent of adult respondents who wanted formal bereavement support did not receive any.

Patricia Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the UK Commission on Bereavement's report entitled bereavement is everybody's business published in 2022, what steps the Government is taking to improve its support for bereaved people.

Helen Whately: The Government has established a cross-Government bereavement working group and is committed to working with the voluntary sector, including the UK Commission on Bereavement, to assess how further support can be provided to those who have been bereaved. We are also working with the National Institute of Health and Care Research on research into the barriers that prevent minority ethnicity groups from accessing bereavement services. We expect the findings of this research in 2024.In addition, NHS England have developed statutory guidance to support integrated care boards in their duty to commission palliative care services within integrated care systems which states that commissioners should ensure there is sufficient access to bereavement services.

Clinical Trials

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the number clinical trials of new medicines taking place in the UK.

Will Quince: The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Clinical Research Network (CRN) supports study sites to deliver research across England. In 2021/22 there were 6,383 studies on the NIHR CRN portfolio which has seen year-on-year growth in study numbers, recruiting in excess of 1 million participants. In March 2021, the Government published its 10-year vision Saving and Improving Lives: The Future of UK Clinical Research Delivery and set out our ambition to create a patient-centred, pro-innovation and digitally enabled clinical research environment. This will enable us to realise the potential of the United Kingdom’s clinical research environment and deliver growth.

Accident and Emergency Departments: Standards

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that Accident and Emergency departments in hospitals can meet waiting time targets.

Will Quince: The Delivery Plan for Recovering Urgent and Emergency Care Services was published on 30 January. The plan aims to deliver one of the fastest and longest sustained improvements in emergency waiting times in the National Health Service's history, including bringing down accident and emergency (A&E) wait times significantly over the next year and down towards pre-pandemic levels within two years.This is supported by additional funding as was announced in the Autumn Statement which provides an additional £3.3 billion in each of 2023/24 and 2024/25.The NHS is also building its bed capacity to be more resilient, expanding by the equivalent of 7,000 general and acute beds, helping reduce crowding and long waits for admission from A&E. This is supported by work to get patients out of beds faster, including a £500 million discharge fund.

Department of Health and Social Care: Conditions of Employment

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if they will take steps to (a) publish an equality impact assessment and (b) consult with trade unions when proposing new HR policies for their Department; and if they will make a statement.

Will Quince: The Department does not currently publish equality impact assessments for human resource (HR) policies. The Department does consult with departmental trade unions and relevant staff network groups when proposing new HR policies, which includes discussing the potential equality impact on the workforce.

Paediatrics: Intensive Care

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that there are a sufficient number of (a) pediatric intensive care unit beds and (b) qualified professionals to support these beds.

Will Quince: The commissioning of paediatric intensive care unit bed capacity sufficient to meet expected demand is a matter for the National Health Service directly.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was between referral and first assessment for autism at Stockport Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service in the latest period for which data is available.

Maria Caulfield: Site level data on autism diagnosis waiting times is not currently available.The Mental Health Services Data Set does, however, hold data concerning autism diagnoses made by mental health organisations at sub-integrated care board (ICB) level. For “NHS Greater Manchester ICB - 01W", the sub-ICB which covers Stockport, as of September 2022 there were 15 patients aged 0 to 17 with an open suspected autism referral. Of these, 5 had had no contact yet and 5 had had a first contact more than 13 weeks after referral.NHS England are working with local systems to improve data quality and completeness, as well as developing a framework to support ICBs to commission best practice autism diagnostic pathways.

Mental Health Services: Hospital Beds

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that England has enough mental health beds for (a) adults and (b) children and adolescents.

Maria Caulfield: It is the responsibility of commissioners to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including adults and children.We are supporting integrated care boards to expand mental health services through the NHS Long Term Plan, which commits to increasing investment into mental health services by at least £2.3 billion a year by 2023/24. This will see a significant expansion in community and crisis mental health services to help adults and children get quicker access to the care they need and prevent avoidable deterioration and hospital admission. Alongside this, the Government is also delivering capital investment in the National Health Service mental health estate. This includes investment in mental health urgent and emergency care infrastructure – funding new and improved spaces to support people experiencing mental health crisis via crisis houses, improvements to emergency departments, step-down beds, and other similar schemes. The Government is also investing in replacing dormitory accommodation in mental health facilities with single ensuite rooms across the country.

Autism: Health Services

Sir Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the policy papers entitled (a) The national strategy for autistic children, young people and adults: 2021 to 2026 and (b) Autism strategy implementation plan: 2021 to 2022 (Annex A), when he plans to publish the Autism strategy implementation plan for 2022 to 2023.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he intends to publish the Autism strategy implementation plan (2022 to 2023) as stated in Part Two of the National strategy for autistic children, young people and adults: 2021 to 2026 and Autism strategy implementation plan: 2021 to 2022 (Annex A).

Maria Caulfield: There is currently no confirmed publication date for an updated implementation plan in relation to the national strategy for autistic children, young people and adults: 2021 to 2026 (published July 2021). We are currently prioritising updating the Autism Act statutory guidance to support the National Health Service and Local Authorities to deliver improved outcomes for autistic people in line with the national Strategy. We expect to publish an updated implementation plan for subsequent years of the Strategy in due course.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Maggie Throup: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of (a) people aged 50 to 64, (b) people aged 65 to 74, (c) people aged 75 and over, (d) pregnant women, (e) people aged five and over at high risk from covid-19 due to a health condition or weakened immune system, (f) people aged five and over who live with someone who has a weakened immune system, (g) people aged 16 and over who are paid or unpaid carers, (h) people living or working in a care home for older people and (i) frontline health and social care workers who had taken up a free covid-19 booster vaccination by (i) 30 November 2021 and (ii) 31 December 2021.

Maria Caulfield: We do not have all the information in the format requested.Please see the attachment for the information provided.This information is published at the following links:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-flu-and-covid-19-surveillance-reports-2021-to-2022-seasonhttps://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/covid-19-vaccinations/covid-19-vaccinations-archive/https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-flu-and-covid-19-vaccine-uptake-in-frontline-healthcare-workers-monthly-data-2021-to-2022Number and proportion taking up COVID-19 booster (docx, 31.2KB)

Influenza: Vaccination

Maggie Throup: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of (a) children aged two and three years on 31 August 2022, (b) primary school-aged children and eligible secondary school-aged children, (c) people aged six months to 50 years in clinical risk groups, (d) pregnant women, (e) people aged 50 to 64, (f) people aged 65 to 74, (g) people aged 75 and over, (h) people staying in long-stay residential care homes, (i) people who are carers, (j) people in receipt of carer’s allowance, (k) the main carer of an older or disabled person, (m) people who are in close contact with immunocompromised individuals and (n) frontline health and social care workers who had taken up a free seasonal flu vaccination by (i) 30 November 2021 and (ii) 31 December 2021.

Maria Caulfield: We do not have all the information in the format requested.Please see the attachment for the information provided.Flu vaccine uptake is published at the following links:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-flu-vaccine-uptake-in-gp-patients-monthly-data-2021-to-2022https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-flu-vaccine-uptake-in-children-of-school-age-monthly-data-2021-to-2022https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-flu-and-covid-19-vaccine-uptake-in-frontline-healthcare-workers-monthly-data-2021-to-2022Number and proportion taking up free flu vaccine (docx, 26.6KB)

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which countries (a) requested covid-19 vaccines from the UK and (b) had this request granted and dispatched to them in 2020.

Maria Caulfield: The following countries requested and received United Kingdom donated doses either bilaterally or via COVAX: Afghanistan, Angola, Antiqua and Barbuda, Armenia, Bangladesh, Belize, Cambodia, Chad, Cote D’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominica, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Laos, Mauritius, Malawi, Malaysia, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Vincent & Grenadines, Senegal, Somalia, St Lucia, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Ukraine, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia. No COVID-19 vaccinations were dispatched prior to 2021.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to continue providing a covid-19 vaccination programme for (a) all people and (b) people classified as vulnerable under the age of 50; and whether he plans to introduce an alternative to the covid-19 vaccination programme for those people.

Maria Caulfield: Everyone, who was five years old or older on 31 August 2022, is currently eligible for primary vaccination and those aged 16 years old or over are also entitled to an initial booster (third dose). Those who are at higher risk of serious outcomes from COVID-19 are eligible for a further seasonal booster under the current autumn campaign.The autumn booster campaign will close in England on 12 February, as will the offer of an initial booster (third dose) for persons aged 16 to 49 years old who are not in a clinical risk group. We encourage everyone currently eligible to come forward before these offers close.In line with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s (JCVI’s) advice, the primary (initial) course offer of COVID-19 vaccination will now move towards a more targeted offer limited to vaccination campaigns for those at higher risk of severe COVID-19. This means that the offer of primary vaccination will continue for at-risk groups including those aged between five and 49 years old who are either at higher clinical risk or at high risk of transmitting the virus to vulnerable people and will end for those aged under 50 years old who are not in an at-risk group. The Government is considering when during 2023 this recommendation should be implemented.The JCVI will continue to review evidence and will provide further advice regarding the 2023 vaccination programmes in due course. The Government continues to be guided by the independent JCVI on who should be offered COVID-19 vaccinations. The offers of primary course vaccination have been widely available since 2021.  A more targeted offer of primary course vaccination during vaccination campaign periods will enable vaccination efforts to be more focused and allow more efficient use of National Health Service resources. The Government has no plans to offer an alternative to the COVID-19 vaccination programme for groups where COVID-19 vaccination is not advised by the JCVI.

Ovarian Cancer: Medical Treatments

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of covid-19 on access to ovarian cancer treatment.

Helen Whately: The ‘Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care’ sets out how the National Health Service will recover and expand elective services over the next three years, including cancer services. We have allocated more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25, in addition to the £2 billion Elective Recovery Fund and £700 million Targeted Investment Fund already made available in 2021/2022 to increase elective activity, including cancer services.

Social Services: Agency Workers

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the annual spend of social care providers on agency care workers in 2022.

Helen Whately: Most agency care workers are employed by independent care providers, and we do not hold data on the costs associated with their deployment. In the Care Quality Commission’s 2022 State of Care report, they stated that in March 2022 agency staff costs make up 13.2% of total staff costs in non-specialist care homes.

Cancer: Medical Treatments

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has a limit on the distance it would require someone to travel to receive (a) radiotherapy and (b) other types of cancer treatment.

Helen Whately: There is no limit on the distance that would be required for someone to receive cancer treatment. The travel a patient needs to undertake is dependent on the types of treatment needed on an individual case basis. Specialised services are not available in every local hospital because they have to be delivered by specialist teams of health professionals who have the necessary skills, experience and access to equipment and medicines.Patient-specific requirements are also based on what each individual could manage and cope with and would be discussed between the patient and clinician.

Cancer: Waiting Lists

Dr Neil Hudson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the cancer care backlog in (a) Penrith and The Border and (b) Cumbria.

Helen Whately: The Department committed an additional £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25, in addition to the £2 billion Elective Recovery Fund and £700 million targeted Investment Fund made available last financial year, 2021/2022, to increase capacity in elective services, including for cancer care. £2.3 billion was awarded at the Spending Review 2021 to transform diagnostic services over the next three years. Most of this will help increase the number of Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) up to 160 by March 2025. These new CDCs have included Penrith CDC (a large hub), which opened in October 2021. Across Cumbria, the local Cancer Alliances work with together with hospitals, general practices, local authorities, charities, and other support organisations to detect cancer as early as possible, improve results for patients, and provide the best possible patient experience.

Department of Health and Social Care: Correspondence

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to provide a substantive reply to Question 125459 on Department of Health and Social Care: Correspondence, tabled by the hon. Member for Liverpool, Walton on 17 January 2023.

Helen Whately: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 1 February 2023 to Question 125459.

Integrated Care Systems

Steve Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has a timetable for bringing forward commencement orders on powers for the Care Quality Commission to assess integrated care systems.

Helen Whately: Section 31 of the Health and Care Act 2022 introduced duties on the Care Quality Commission to conduct reviews and assessments of integrated care systems. The government is preparing to make a Commencement Statutory Instrument that will commence these duties on 1 April 2023.

Mortality Rates

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Department has made of the causes of the increase in the number of excess deaths; and what steps he is taking to reduce that number.

Neil O'Brien: It is likely that a combination of factors has contributed to an increase in the number of deaths at home, including high flu prevalence and the ongoing challenges of COVID-19 and health conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.We are taking steps to help reduce excess deaths, including those which involve COVID-19. Vaccines remain the first line of defence. Antivirals and other treatments provide a necessary additional defence by protecting patients who become infected with COVID-19, particularly those for whom the vaccine may be less effective such as the immunosuppressed. We are preparing for variants of COVID-19 and seasonal flu infections with an integrated COVID-19 booster and flu vaccination programme, minimising hospital admissions from both viruses.The National Health Service has published a delivery plan setting out a clear vision for how the NHS will recover and expand elective services over the next three years. The plan commits the NHS to deliver nine million additional treatments and diagnostic procedures over the next three years and around 30 per cent more elective activity than it was doing before the pandemic by 2024/25.We are making progress in restoring NHS Health Check delivery, a core part of our cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention pathway. Delivery is expected to return to pre-pandemic levels by June 2023 and we are creating a national digital NHS Health Check so we can go even further. We continue to work closely with partners to consider what more can be done to improve the prevention, detection, diagnosis and management of CVD and we will set out our plan in the Major Conditions Strategy.

Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Retained EU Law Bill, whether he plans to (a) revoke, (b) retain or (c) replace The Blood Safety and Quality Regulations 2005.

Neil O'Brien: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 14 December 2022 to Question 107094.

NHS

Liz Twist: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will set out a timetable for the publication of the refreshed NHS Long Term Plan.

Will Quince: The Department and NHS England are working together on an ongoing basis to review progress of commitments in the NHS Long Term Plan. The Hewitt Review is currently looking at the scope and options for national targets and how to empower local leaders to improve outcomes for their populations and the Department looks forward to considering its conclusions. The Government is building on the commitments in the NHS Long Term Plan through the ‘Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care’, the ‘Delivery plan for recovering urgent and emergency care services’, the upcoming general practice access recovery plan, as well as the long term workforce plan and the major conditions strategy which will be published in due course.

Wales Office

Borderlands Line

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, when his Department last met the Welsh Assembly Government to discuss the Wrexham to Bidston train line.

David T C  Davies: The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales regularly engages with Welsh Government, Transport for Wales and a range of stakeholders regarding cross-border rail infrastructure. This includes work to understand options for improvements to the Wrexham-Bidston line.Cross-border services between Wrexham and Bidston are operated by Transport for Wales. Passenger services are a devolved matter in Wales and therefore Transport for Wales is the responsibility of the Welsh Government.

Railways: South Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Transport on (a) upgrades to the South Wales relief line and (b) the rail-related recommendations in the report by Lord Burns entitled South East Wales Transport Commission: final recommendations, published on 26 November 2020.

David T C  Davies: I have regular discussions with the Transport Secretary on a range of transport issues, including infrastructure in Wales.We have recently announced a further £2.7 million study with Welsh Government, funded by the UK Government, to develop options for new stations and services on the South Wales Main Line.The study follows Lord Hendy’s recommendations from his review of transport connectivity across the UK, which put forward the need to relieve congestion on the M4. A series of options will be considered as part of this study, among which is the development of five brand new stations between Cardiff and Severn Tunnel.

Department for Education

Nurseries: Business Rates and Energy

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that nurseries are supported with rising costs of energy; and what plans her Department have to support nurseries with business rates.

Claire Coutinho: The government recognises the impact rising energy prices can have on businesses, the voluntary sector and public sector organisations of all sizes, including all Early Years settings. The energy regulator Ofgem and the Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) department are in regular contact with business groups and suppliers to understand the challenges they face and to explore ways to protect consumers and businesses.In September 2022, the government announced unprecedented support to protect households and businesses from high energy prices. The £18 billion Energy Bill Relief Scheme is supporting millions of businesses with rising energy costs, and the Chancellor has made clear it will continue to do so from now until April.The government has announced a freeze to the business rates multiplier in 2022/23 and 2023/24. This will support all ratepayers, including Early Years businesses, and mean bills are 6% lower than without the freeze.

Special Educational Needs: Hearing Impairment

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the consequences for her policies of findings by the National Deaf Children's Society that (a) the number of teachers of the deaf in England has dropped by 19 per cent since 2011 and (b) deaf children achieve on average a grade less at GCSE than their hearing peers.

Claire Coutinho: The department is firmly committed to ensuring that children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including sensory impairment, receive the support needed to succeed in their education.We have developed a new approval process for providers of the Mandatory Qualification for Sensory Impairment (MQSI) from the start of the 2023/2024 academic year. Our aim is to ensure a steady supply of teachers for children with visual, hearing, and multi-sensory impairments, in both specialist and mainstream settings.The department has promoted the development of hearing impaired specialist units and also resourced provisions in mainstream schools so that more deaf children can be educated with all children. Co-operation between education and health professionals is also key. Programmes such as the new-born hearing screening, have been effective at early identification and ensuring that very young children receive the specialist support they need.On 29 March 2022, the department published the SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Green paper, which sets out our plans to improve the experience and outcomes for children and young people with SEND and those who need AP.  We are now carefully considering all of the feedback we received and will publish a full response in an Improvement Plan early this year.

Pupils: Data Protection

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the 2018-2020 LRS Data Breach by Trustopia, whether pupils past and present will be informed that their personal data was used by LRS for age verification purposes.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the 2018-2020 LRS Data Breach by Trustopia, what steps her Department has taken since that incident to improve their data protection practices.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the 2018-2020 LRS Data Breach by Trustopia, who within her Department is accountable for improving its data protection practices.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not use the Learning Records Service (LRS) information for age verification, although it does include dates of birth for identification purposes. The dates of birth on the service was misused by Trustopia to search for individuals that it had already acquired data to confirm the age given to Trustopia matched what was held on the LRS by the department.UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) states that if a breach is likely to result in a high risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals, the Department must inform those concerned directly and without undue delay. As no additional personal data of pupils past and present was compromised by the breach, whilst the breach itself remained serious, it did not pose a high risk to individuals.Once aware, the Department took immediate action and referred the incident to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). At the time of the breach, the Department was already working closely with the ICO in relation to the audit already in progress.Procedures for monitoring unusual activity have been strengthened, along with additional improvements. These improvements include a more robust application process, better in-application audit processes that have been used to monitor and remove users who may not be using the system in accordance with their agreement, and the ability to remove or suspend accounts quickly in the event of possible misuse.The Department has made significant progress in improving processes and has completed 97% of the ICO recommendations to date, with plans to complete the remaining recommendations by the end of March 2023. All actions relating to the LRS data breach have been completed.The Department continues to work closely with the ICO. No further controls from the ICO have been placed upon the Department.The Office of the Data Protection Officer leads on ensuring compliance with Data Protection Legislation for the Department, led by the Departmental Data Protection Officer. The team continues to work with the Department and the ICO to make further improvements in the Department’s data protection practices.

Schools: Racial Discrimination

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to tackle racism towards Gypsy, Roma, and Travellers in schools.

Claire Coutinho: I refer the hon. Member for Strangford to the answer I gave on 19 January 2023 to PQ 122191.

Special Educational Needs: Speech and Language Disorders

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the effect of the proposed SEND and Alternative Provision Green Papers on support for children with speech and language difficulties.

Claire Coutinho: The Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper set out a whole system review, looking at how the department can improve the SEND system for every child and young person, no matter their specific need or condition.The department’s vision for children and young people with SEND, including those with speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN), is the same as it is for all children and young people. The department wants children with SEND to achieve well in their early years, at school, and in further education. Early this year, we will publish a SEND and AP Improvement Plan, confirming plans over the proposals contained in the Green Paper. This will include details on new SEND and AP National Standards, which aim to set clear and ambitious expectations about identifying and meeting needs, including for SLCN.In addition, the department is investing £17 million to deliver the Nuffield Early Language Intervention programme. The programme supports children in reception with their language skills. In total, over 11,100 schools, or two thirds of all primary schools, are taking part in this proven, evidence-based programme, benefitting around 90,000 children most in need of language support. Registered schools are eligible to continue to receive the funded programme during the 2022/23 academic year.

Foster Care: Stockport

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many foster carers there are in Stockport (a) constituency and (b) borough.

Claire Coutinho: The department does not hold the information on numbers of foster carers per constituency and borough. This is a matter for Ofsted, or Stockport Children’s Social Service’s department, who are responsible for collecting and presenting this information.

Special Educational Needs: Young Offenders

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether there is a standardised procedure for ensuring that young offenders are assessed for an EHCP.

Claire Coutinho: The Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0-25 Years (2015), sets out that local authorities must promote the education of each child and young person while they are in custody and on their release, whether they have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or not.Each child or young person entering custody will undergo an educational assessment, including an assessment of literacy, numeracy and, where necessary, a screening to identify whether further assessments to identify special educational needs (SEN) are required. If the child or young person already has an EHC plan, the home local authority must send it to the Youth Offending Team, the person in charge of the relevant youth accommodation, and the child or young person’s health commissioner, within five working days of becoming aware of the detention.Where a child or young person does not already have an EHC plan, the parent, young person or the person in charge of the relevant youth accommodation can request an assessment of the child or young person’s post-detention EHC needs from the home local authority.Anyone else, including Youth Offending Teams and the education provider in custody, has a right to bring the child or young person to the notice of the home local authority as someone who may have SEN and the local authority must consider whether an assessment of their post-detention EHC needs is necessary.

Special Educational Needs: Finance

Nick Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to review the level of funding provided for children with Education, Health and Care Plans in mainstream education settings.

Claire Coutinho: The Autumn Statement announced significant additional investment in core schools’ funding. The core schools budget, which provides funding for mainstream schools and high needs, will increase by £2 billion in each of the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years, over and above totals announced at the 2021 Spending Review.Schools' funding is £4 billion higher this year than last, and it will rise by another £3.5 billion, on top of that, next year. Taken together, this means an increase of over 15% in just two years.Local authorities are required by regulations to provide mainstream schools with sufficient funds, through their local schools funding formula, to enable them to meet the additional cost of pupils with special educational needs (SEN), including those with an education, health and care (EHC) plan, up to £6,000. Local authorities identify a notional special educational needs and disability (SEND) budget for schools as a guide to what they may need to spend in supporting their pupils with SEN. The department has issued guidance to local authorities on their calculation of the notional SEN budget using their local funding formula.When the costs of additional support required for a pupil with SEN exceed £6,000, the local authority should allocate additional top-up funding to cover the excess costs. This funding comes from the local authority’s high needs budget. This may follow a statutory assessment producing an EHC plan, though local authorities have the discretion to provide high needs top-up funding for pupils without an EHC plan.As the department moves towards a different system for funding mainstream schools, in which the department, rather than local authorities, will determine allocations for individual schools through a single, national formula, we plan to move to a standardised calculation of schools’ indicative budgets for their pupils with SEN. Following the recent consultation on implementing this new system, we are considering the detail on how to achieve this and intend to consult further in future.In addition, the department has committed to publishing a SEND and alternative provision improvement plan early this year, following the Green Paper publication in March 2022, which set out proposals to improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND, within a fairer and financially sustainable system.

Young People: Carers

Ed Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish a list of all the data her Department collects and holds on assessing the needs of young carers; if she will publish links to that data for (a) 2021, (b) 2022 and (c) 2023 to date; and if she will make a statement.

Ed Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve the quality of data held by the Government on young carers and on assessing the needs of young carers, and if she will make a statement.

Claire Coutinho: When a child is assessed as being in need of children’s social care services, social workers will record factors that are relevant to that episode of need, with ‘young carer’ as one of those possible factors. The recorded factors are published annually in the statistics release ‘Characteristics of children in need’, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/characteristics-of-children-in-need.The data for 2019/20, 2020/21, and 2021/22 shows that in England, a young carer was identified in around 18,000-19,000 episodes of need in each year, or around 4% of episodes with assessment factor information recorded. This data can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/af9db862-a2e7-42fa-8b24-08dafb06f66e.There can be differences in the recording practices between local authorities, therefore the assessment factors data should be treated with a degree of caution.From January 2023, all primary and secondary education settings in England will be asked annually if a student undertakes caring responsibilities at home, via the School Census. This will increase young carers visibility in the school system, give a wealth of demographic evidence on who young carers are, and provide an annual data collection to help identify long-term trends.

Special Educational Needs

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has provided to local authorities on identifying young people with special educational needs.

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has given to local authorities on ensuring the education, health and social care services work together to provide services with young people with special educational needs.

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has given to local authorities on informing young people regarding disability and special educational needs.

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which local councils have had intervention from the Government to ensure that they provide effective complaints procedures regarding their local offer.

Claire Coutinho: Part Three of the Children and Families Act 2014, imposes a range of duties on local authorities in England in relation to children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in their areas, or for whom they are otherwise responsible. These include:The identification of children and young people with SENDThe integration of educational provision and training provision with health care provision and social care provisionThe joint commissioning of education, health and care provision for children and young people with SENDCooperation with their local partners over the authorities’ functions under the 2014 Act in relation to SEND, with reciprocal duties on their partnersPublishing and then keeping under review SEND Local Offers, which set out the provision they expect to be available across education, health and social care for children and young people with SENDMaking arrangements for children and young people and their parents to be provided with advice and information about matters relating to the special educational needs or disability of the children or young people concernedThe 2014 Act requires my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, to issue a code of practice giving guidance to local authorities, and others, about the exercise of their functions under Part Three of the Act, to which they must have regard. This statutory guidance is the ‘Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ (2015), which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25.Local authorities must publish a summary of comments at least annually. All local areas are subject to robust SEND inspections, and Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) have just commenced a strengthened local inspection framework, which does include judgements about the Local Offer where appropriate. Where a local area’s Local Offer is identified as a significant weakness by Ofsted/CQC, the department provides intervention and support to secure improvement.

Confucius Institutes

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to tackle the threat of Confucius Institutes to democracy and national security.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help counter potential undue influence of Confucius institutes on universities’ wider relationships with China.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report by the Henry Jackson Society entitled an Investigation of Chinas Confucius Institutes in the UK, published September 2022, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department's policies of that report's findings on the scope of the activities of Confucius Institutes.

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential influence of Confucius Institutes on UK universities.

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help counter the potential undue influence of Confucius Institutes on universities’ wider relationships with China.

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has taken steps with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle national security concerns arising from the work of the Confucius Institute in (a) British academia and (b) wider society.

Claire Coutinho: The government continuously assesses threats posed to the UK. As a matter of longstanding policy, we are unable to release information regarding threat assessments, on the grounds of national security.The government is clear that any challenges to our core values, whatever their origin, will not be tolerated. Departmental officials will continue to work closely with their counterparts across government to strengthen protective measures.The National Security Bill currently before Parliament brings together vital new measures to protect our national security. The new Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS) has now been added to the Bill, which has been created to tackle covert influence in the UK. The scheme is designed to strengthen the integrity of our politics and institutions, and protect the UK from state threats.The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill will ensure that lawful freedom of speech is fully supported in English higher education (HE), regardless of where the challenge comes from. It will require and empower registered HE providers, colleges and students’ unions to push back on freedom of speech related threats from overseas. The Bill will also address concerns about the possible influence of overseas money in English HE. These new measures will help the Office for Students (OfS) understand the possible impact of overseas income on freedom of speech and academic freedom, and monitor any trends and patterns of concern. The Bill will allow the OfS to take appropriate action, including issuing penalties, if there is evidence that an HE provider has breached its freedom of speech duties.The department continuously strengthens protective measures, and expects universities to do the same. Universities UK, with government support, continues work to increase the understanding and awareness of the threat from interference within the HE sector. A key output of this is the publication of two sets of guidelines and a set of case studies, which can be found at the following links: https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/policy-and-research/publications/managing-risks-internationalisation, https://www.ukri.org/publications/managing-risks-in-international-research-and-innovation/ and: https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/universities-uk-international/insights-and-publications/uuki-insights/case-studies-how-universities-are.With regards to Confucius Institutes, like all similar bodies they should operate transparently, and with a full commitment to our values of openness and freedom of expression. Universities have a responsibility to ensure that any partnership with a Confucius Institute is managed appropriately, and the right due diligence is in place. The government encourages any providers with concerns to contact the government.

Children: Speech and Language Disorders

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has issued to Family Hubs on identifying and supporting children with speech and language difficulties.

Claire Coutinho: At the Autumn Budget and Spending Review 2021, the government announced a package of around £300 million to transform services for parents, carers, babies, and children in half of upper tier local authorities across England. An additional £28.7 million has been made available to these 75 local authorities to improve young children’s home learning environments, helping them to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.The department has published guidance setting out the expectations of local authorities receiving a share of the funding, which is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/family-hubs-and-start-for-life-programme-local-authority-guide. These expectations include supporting parents and carers to access fast and effective support for their child’s speech and language needs, including through multi-agency pathways, which are co-designed with the local speech and language service through the family hub network.The government also published guidance in 2020 to help local areas improve speech, language, and communication in the early years. This includes an Early Language Identification Measure and Intervention tool for use with children aged 2 to 2 and a half. This guidance is accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/best-start-in-speech-language-and-communication.

Department for Education: Conditions of Employment

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if they will take steps to (a) publish an equality impact assessment and (b) consult with trade unions when proposing new HR policies for their Department; and if they will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The Department conducts an equality impact assessment and consults with its recognised trade unions for all new HR policies and amendments to existing HR policies.

Department for Education: Holiday Leave

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has notified staff to (a) tell or (b) remind them that they can sell annual leave in the last four months.

Nick Gibb: The Department’s current annual leave policy does not include the option to buy and sell annual leave.

Secondary Education

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support schools and pupils in (a) Year 7, (b) Year 8, (c) Year 9, (d) Year 10 and (e) Year 11 with (i) examinations, (ii) social development and (iii) pastoral care.

Nick Gibb: The Schools White Paper, published in March 2022, sets out the Department’s long term vision of a school system that helps every child to fulfil their potential by ensuring that they receive the right support, in the right place, at the right time.The White Paper sets an ambition that, in secondary schools, the national average grade in both GCSE English language and maths will increase from 4.5 in 2019 to 5 by 2030.The Department will achieve these ambitions by delivering an excellent teacher for every child, high standards of curriculum, attendance and behaviour, targeted support for every child who needs it, and a stronger and fairer school system that works for every child.The 2022 Autumn Statement announced significant additional core schools’ funding, increasing by £2 billion in 2023/24 and 2024/25, over and above totals announced at the 2021 Spending Review. This additional funding will bring the core schools budget to a total of £58.8 billion in 2024/25. This will enable school leaders to continue to concentrate funding in the areas that positively affect educational attainment, including high quality teaching and targeted support to the children who need it most.It is up to schools to decide what pastoral and extracurricular support to extend to their pupils to support their social development, building on the requirements of the statutory Relationships, Sex and Health Education curriculum. It is also up to schools to decide how to support pupils to prepare successfully for examinations.

Schools: Physical Education and Sports

Mr Robin Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to ensure that schools have more notice of future rounds of PE and sport premium funding.

Nick Gibb: The Department is currently considering arrangements for the primary PE and Sport premium for the 2023/24 academic year and beyond and will confirm the position as early as possible.

Schools: Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, in the context of rising energy costs, if she will take steps to (a) ensure schools have financial support to retrofit their buildings with energy saving measures and (b) provide funding for school rebuilding programmes to secure lower energy costs over the long term.

Nick Gibb: This financial year, eligible schools have received an allocation from an additional £447 million in capital funding for improvements to buildings and facilities, prioritising works to improve energy efficiency. The Department has also published guidance for schools on sensible steps for reducing energy use and improving energy efficiency.The Department’s School Rebuilding Programme will rebuild or refurbish buildings at 500 schools. New buildings delivered through the Programme are designed to be net zero in operation, with increased resilience to climate change. The Department has also allocated £1.8 billion in capital funding this financial year to maintain and improve the condition of school buildings, including improving energy efficiency, as part of over £13 billion allocated since 2015.In addition, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) provides grants for public sector bodies, including schools, to fund heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency measures. Phase 3 of the PSDS is expected to provide £1.425 billion in grant funding over the 2022/23 and 2024/25 financial years.The Department is piloting approaches to sustainable building design and retrofit to gather further evidence on the most effective and efficient approaches. The Department has also provided schools and those responsible for school buildings with guidance on sustainability, managing energy and water use and minimising waste in its ‘Good Estate Management for Schools’ manual.A new energy scheme for businesses, charities, and the public sector was also confirmed on 9 January 2023, ahead of the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme ending in March. The new scheme will mean all eligible UK businesses and other non-domestic energy users, including schools, will receive a discount on high energy bills until 31 March 2024. In addition, taking the Dedicated Schools Grant allocations and the additional funding announced in the Autumn Statement together, core schools funding, which includes funding for both mainstream schools and high needs, is increasing by £3.5 billion in the 2023/24 financial year, compared to the 2022/23 financial year. This takes the total core schools budget for 2023/24 to £57.3 billion.

Qualifications: Newcastle upon Tyne Central

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to 30.5 percent of people with no qualifications in Benwell from 2021 ONS census data, what steps her Department is taking to increase the number of people with qualifications in Newcastle Upon Tyne Central constituency.

Robert Halfon: The government is investing £3.8 billion more in further education (FE) and skills over the Parliament to ensure people across the country, including in Newcastle Upon Tyne, have access to the skills or qualifications they need to build a fulfilling career in jobs the economy needs.The department is investing a further £125 million in 16 to 19 education in the 2023/24 financial year and an extra £1.6 billion in 2024/25, compared with 2021/22. This is the biggest increase in 16 to 19 funding in a decade.Learners in the area have a wide choice of providers. This includes the Newcastle College Group (NCG) which is a large group of 6 general FE colleges and a sixth-form college, as well as Gateshead College and a range of independent training providers.T Levels are new high-level technical qualifications and are already available in the Newcastle area, including at Gateshead and City of Sunderland Colleges and will be available at NCG from September 2023.The department is increasing investment in apprenticeships to £2.7 billion by 2024/25 and supporting employers in all sectors and all areas of the country, including Newcastle Upon Tyne, to use apprenticeships to develop the skilled workforces they need. Since May 2010, there have been a total of 9,690 apprenticeship starts in Newcastle Upon Tyne Central.Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast-track to an interview with an employer. Adults can benefit from a number of Skills Bootcamps being delivered in Newcastle upon Tyne, including green retrofit, creative industries, coding, data engineering as well as many online courses on offer.Colleges in Newcastle upon Tyne are also delivering Free courses for Jobs, which enable learners without a level 3 qualification, or learners with any qualification level but earning below the National Living Wage, to gain a qualification for free. Newcastle Upton Tyne City College offer level 3 qualifications in various subject areas, including business and textiles and Newcastle College offer level 3 courses in accounting, adult care, and counselling.The department is continuing to invest in education and skills training for adults through the adult education budget (AEB) at £1.34 billion in the 2022/23 academic year. This fully funds or co-funds skills provision for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to level 3, to help them gain the skills or qualifications they need. The AEB supports learners aged 19 to 23 obtain their first full qualification at level two or three, as well as full funding for all adults in England who do not have a standard GCSE pass or level 2 functional skills qualification to study maths and English courses up to level 2. It also funds adults with no or low digital skills to undertake improved digital qualifications up to level 1 to provide the digital skills needed for life and work.To help learners choose the right qualifications for them we are streamlining and improving the quality of the post 16 qualifications system at level 3 and below, strengthening the pathways for students to progress into further study or skilled employment and training.

Religious Freedom: Curriculum

Andrew Lewer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that school curriculums include teaching on freedom of religion or belief.

Nick Gibb: The National Curriculum is broad and balanced for pupils to learn about how different groups and societies have contributed to the development of the UK. The curriculum offers many opportunities for schools to do this, notably through citizenship education and relationships, sex and health education (RSHE). The RSHE curriculum has a strong focus on equality, respect, and the harmful impact of stereotyping, as well as the importance of valuing difference.Within the citizenship curriculum pupils should be taught about the diverse national, regional, religious and ethnic identities and the need for mutual respect and understanding.In delivering the curriculum, schools should be aware of their duties relating to political impartiality, as set out under the Education Act 1996, and must ensure that, where political issues are discussed in the classroom, they are presented in a balanced way. The Department has published guidance on political impartiality in schools which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools.Legal duties on political impartiality do not supersede other important requirements for schools, including their responsibility to promote fundamental British values, including the mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. Developing and deepening pupils’ understanding of these values is part of the Ofsted inspection framework, alongside expectations that schools develop responsible citizens and promote an inclusive environment that meets the needs of all pupils, irrespective of their characteristics.

Ministry of Justice

Reoffenders

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people given a life sentence subsequently committed a serious further offence in each year since 2010.

Damian Hinds: The table below sets out the total number of offenders who committed (that is, who were convicted of) a serious further offence (SFO), having previously been sentenced to life imprisonment, for notifications submitted to the National Offender Management Service/HM Prison and Probation Service between 1 April 2010 and 31 March 2014.Any data on SFOs held centrally prior to 2010 reflected the definition of SFO at the time and relied on such information as was recorded by local probation trusts being shared with the Ministry of Justice. In 2009/10 the Ministry of Justice established an electronic case management system, which enabled reliable SFO data to be collated centrally for the first time. Once the quality checks which are required for any publication were undertaken, the Ministry of Justice was eventually in a position to publish SFO numbers, to promote transparency and improve accountability.Year of SFO notificationNumber of offenders convicted of an SFO who had previously been sentenced to life imprisonment2010/1142011/1222012/1302013/147 1. Time period for conviction data relates to the date of SFO notification to HMPPS not the date of conviction.2. The data only includes convictions for serious further offences that have been notified to the national SFO Team, HMPPS.3. Data Sources and Quality. We have drawn these figures from administrative IT systems which, as with some large-scale recording systems, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.The latest figures for 1 April 2014 and 31 March 2021 were published in October 2022 and can be accessed by the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/proven-reoffending-statistics-october-to-december-2020.Serious further offences are incredibly rare, with fewer than 0.5% of offenders supervised by the Probation Service going on to commit a serious further offence, but each one is investigated fully so we can take action where necessary. We have also injected extra funding of more than £155 million a year into the Probation Service to deliver tougher supervision, reduce caseloads and recruit thousands more staff to keep the public safer.

Employment Tribunals Service

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of employment tribunal claims were accepted between 1 January and 31 December December 2022.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of employment tribunal claims were accepted each year between 2010 and 2022.

Mike Freer: The proportion of Employment Tribunal claims accepted for period January 2010 to September 2022 are outlined in the below table.Calendar YearNumber of Claims Rejected (2)Number of Claims Accepted (3)Proportion of Claims AcceptedJanuary to December 20101,152192,43299%January to December 20111,075220,102100%January to December 20121,068176,27199%January to December 2013750152,573100%January to December 201417051,940100%January to December 201521574,068100%January to December 201624586,622100%January to December 2017345115,334100%January to December 2018809118,34899%January to December 2019840108,59299%January to December 2020781117,43399%January to March 20215724,117100%June to December 20212,05745,12696%January to September 20222,10855,17796%(1) Data to March 2021 extracted from legacy database. Data from June 21 to September 2022 extracted from the reform database in line with published statistics.(2) The table shows claims that remained rejected for the calendar year that the report was run but may have been accepted in the following calendar year.(3) A claim may be brought under more than one jurisdiction or subsequently amended or clarified in the course of proceedings but will be counted only once. Data from published statistics.The data may differ slightly to that of the published stats as this data was run on a different date, specifically for this request.Data is taken from a live management information system and can change over time.Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and is the best data that is available.

Energy: Meters

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2023 to Question 131105 on Energy: Meters, how many court orders were granted allowing energy companies to forcibly install prepayment meters in homes in the week commencing 23 January 2023.

Mike Freer: For the week commencing 23 January 2023, 6,360 warrants requested by energy suppliers were granted, uncontested by customers/occupiers.These figures represent all warrants to enforce rights of entry, including those relating to safety, as warrants specifically for the purpose of installing a prepayment meter cannot be isolated from the data. The figures do not distinguish between residential or business premises either.In granting any one or more application(s), the Justice of the Peace must be satisfied by evidence given on oath by the energy supplier or their representative that the statutory requirements have been met, that the supplier and the agent comply with the requirements of Ofgem, and occupiers have been informed of their right to a hearing.These data are management information and are not subject to the same level of checks as official statistics. The data provided is the most recent available and for that reason might differ slightly from any previously published information. Recent data are especially vulnerable to quality checking and so may be subject to change.

Crimes of Violence: Reoffenders

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of Serious Further Offence's committed by region in each year since 2010.

Damian Hinds: The table attached sets out the total number of offenders who committed (that is, who were convicted of) a serious further offence (SFO), by region, while under supervision or within 28 days of completing supervision, for notifications submitted to NOMS/HMPPS between 1 April 2009 and 31 March 2021.No data on SFOs was collected centrally prior to 2010 – meaning the extent of the issue from 2000-2010 is unknown and not publicly available. Publication of the data each year from 2010 was introduced to improve accountability and transparency and ensure that learnings can be implemented to protect the public.The most recently published figures show the Probation Service supervise 172,253 offenders in the community and, on average, fewer than 0.5% of offenders go on to commit serious further offences. Each one is investigated fully so we can take action where necessary. We have injected extra funding of more than £155 million a year into the Probation Service to deliver tougher supervision, reduce caseloads and recruit thousands more staff to keep the public safer.Table (xls, 46.5KB)

Liverpool Prison: Repairs and Maintenance

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Ministry of Justice: spend control data for April 2022 to June 2022 published on 30 September 2022, if he will provide a breakdown of the £47m expenditure on HMPPS Liverpool Refurbishment.

Damian Hinds: This information remains commercially sensitive at this time.

Treasury

Brexit: Economic Situation

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how his Department measures the potential impact of the UK's withdrawal from the EU on the economy.

Andrew Griffith: It is for the Office for Budget Responsibility to provide economic and fiscal forecasts. Global external factors, including Covid and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, continue to put pressures on the UK economy. It is challenging to definitively disentangle the effect of these global factors from the longer-term impacts of EU exit on the UK economy and households.

Debts

Jessica Morden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a limit on the number of times creditors can contact people in debt.

Andrew Griffith: The Government and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) expect financial services firms to take whatever steps they can to support and provide appropriate level of care to their customers. This includes offering tailored support to customers struggling to pay their mortgage or other loans. In June 2022, the FCA published ‘Dear CEO’ letters to firms and reiterated the FCA’s expectations on firms dealing with borrowers in financial difficulty. This includes expectations on firms to provide appropriate level of care and support to their customers; to give borrowers in financial difficulty appropriate tailored forbearance that is in their interests taking account of their individual circumstances; and to support borrowers showing signs of financial difficulty or struggling with debt, by making them aware of and helping them access money guidance or free debt advice. More recently, the FCA published findings from their comprehensive review of firms’ treatment of borrowers in financial difficulty following the pandemic and is taking action to ensure high standards. To help people in problem debt, the Government launched the Breathing Space scheme in England and Wales in 2021. The scheme gives eligible people in problem debt who receive professional debt advice access to a 60-day period in which enforcement action is paused and most fees, charges and interest are frozen.

Blackmore Bond: Insolvency

Patricia Gibson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on addressing the accountability of financial regulators after the collapse of Blackmore Bond plc.

Andrew Griffith: The Government considers it is vitally important that there are appropriate mechanisms in place to ensure the financial services regulators are accountable for all aspects of their performance. The FCA is responsible for ensuring consumer protection for a broad range of financial services products. However, it does not regulate all financial services firms and products. Blackmore Bond Plc was not authorised by the FCA and the sale of the ‘mini-bond’ product it offered was not an activity regulated by the FCA.

Cryptocurrencies: Antisemitism

Pat McFadden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the report by the Antisemitism Policy Trust entitled Antisemitism and Cryptocurrency: A perfect Union, published in 2022, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the use of cryptocurrency by (a) terrorist, (b) criminal and (c) other groups; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Griffith: Since January 2020 the FCA has been the Anti Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing supervisor of UK cryptoasset activity. By maintaining a robust gateway for firms seeking to register for cryptoasset activity in the UK, we continue to reduce and prevent the financing of criminal and terrorist groups. The government’s ambition is for the UK to be home to the most open, well-regulated, and technologically advanced capital markets in the world. However, recognising that there are both risks and opportunities associated with cryptoassets, the UK has adopted a staged, proportionate and agile approach to regulation, which is sensitive to risks posed, including the risk of financial crime, and responsive to new developments in the market.  This year a new regulatory measure known as the ‘travel rule’ comes into effect, ensuring that virtual-asset transfers are accompanied by detailed personal information of both the originator and beneficiary. The new requirements will apply to crypto-asset exchange providers and custodian wallet providers and will help remove some of the anonymity associated with private wallet addresses.

Pay

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the impact of below inflation pay rises on household disposable income.

Andrew Griffith: Since mid-2021, UK inflation has been pushed higher by global pressures, such as supply chain disruptions from Covid-19, and pressures following Russia’s war against Ukraine. More recently, tightening in the labour market, rising wages and other input prices for firms mean that domestic factors are playing a bigger role. As a result, consumer price inflation was 10.5% in December 2022. Wages have also grown but remain lower than current levels of inflation.Total annual pay growth increased to 6.4% in the three months to November 2022, significantly above pre-pandemic average growth of 3.4% (2019 average). Below inflation wage growth has led to a fall in real household disposable income. Latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show real household disposable income decreased by 2.6% on the year in Q3 2022. The OBR, in its November 2022 forecast, expected real household disposable income to fall in 2022 and 2023, and start increasing from Q4 2023.

Small Businesses: Tax Allowances

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations or feedback he has received from (a) small business community, (b) the science community and (c) the investment community on the changes to R&D tax credit announced in the Autumn Statement 2022.

Victoria Atkins: The Chancellor set out at the Autumn Statement that the Government will work with industry ahead of Spring Budget to understand whether and how to provide further support for R&D intensive small and medium enterprises (SMEs), while also considering fiscal sustainability. The Government will continue to engage with industry in the coming months and any further changes will be set out in detail in the usual way at the Budget. The Government has launched a consultation on R&D Tax Relief Reform which closes on 13th March.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Middle East: Fenethylline

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has a strategy for countering the captagon trade in the Middle East.

David Rutley: The production and smuggling of captagon is a multi-billion dollar trade, essentially emanating from Asad-regime control within Syria. The captagon trade is a growing concern, which is having a destabilising effect in the region. Captagon provides illicit revenue streams to multiple malign actors, notably the Syrian Asad regime and its co-conspirators, principally Hezbollah and other Iranian militias. The UK is stepping up its efforts to work with likeminded partners to combat this, including by drawing international attention to the issue (for example in an intervention at the UN Security Council on 25 January) and increasing our cooperation with regional States.

Middle East: Fenethylline

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the captagon trade in the Levant region.

David Rutley: The production and smuggling of captagon is a multi-billion dollar trade, essentially emanating from Asad-regime control within Syria. The captagon trade is a growing concern, which is having a destabilising effect in the region. Captagon provides illicit revenue streams to multiple malign actors, notably the Syrian Asad regime and its co-conspirators, principally Hezbollah and other Iranian militias. The UK is stepping up its efforts to work with likeminded partners to combat this, including by drawing international attention to the issue (for example in an intervention at the UN Security Council on 25 January) and increasing our cooperation with regional States.

Middle East: Fenethylline

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the impact of the captagon trade on the ability of States to circumvent sanctions.

David Rutley: Estimates by independent experts suggest captagon provides the Syrian regime with between $USD 10-57 billion per year, up to 10 times more than Syria's annual budget. This trade increases regional instability and provides the Asad regime with a financial lifeline, little of which helps the Syrian people. The application of international sanctions remains an appropriate tool to encourage a change in regime behaviour. We will also target those benefiting from narcotics trading, where appropriate. Sanctions continue to signal to regional partners the downside for those who may consider engaging with Damascus or normalising relations with drug lords and war profiteers.

Palestinians: Corruption

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Palestinian Authority on tackling corruption in that region.

David Rutley: There is regular high-level engagement between the UK and the Palestinian Authority, both through our Consulate-General in Jerusalem and through inward and outward visits. We will continue to encourage the Palestinian leadership to work toward strong, inclusive, accountable and democratic institutions, based on respect for the rule of law and human rights. The Minister for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon offered the UK's support in efforts to de-escalate the situation on the ground, in his meetings with Israeli Foreign Minister Cohen, Palestinian Prime Minister Shtayyeh and Palestinian Foreign Minister Malki, during his visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories on 10-13 January.

Salah Hammouri

Sarah Owen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Israeli counterpart on the Israeli government's decision to (a) revoke the permanent residency of and (b) deport Salah Hammouri.

David Rutley: Israel must abide by its obligations under International Humanitarian Law. We continue to call upon the Government of Israel to fully respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of human rights defenders and organisations, and to allow them to freely operate in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). The Minister for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon offered the UK's support in efforts to de-escalate the situation on the ground, in his meetings with Israeli Foreign Minister Cohen, Palestinian Prime Minister Shtayyeh and Palestinian Foreign Minister Malki, during his visit to Israel and the OPTs on 10-13 January.

Israeli Settlements

Nadia Whittome: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the Government's policy is on the legality of Israeli settlements under international law.

David Rutley: The UK's position on settlements is clear. They are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. We want to see a contiguous West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as part of a viable and sovereign Palestinian state, based on pre-1967 lines. We urge Israel to halt its settlement expansion. The Minister for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, reinforced this message in his meetings with Israeli Foreign Minister Cohen, Palestinian Prime Minister Shtayyeh and Palestinian Foreign Minister Malki, during his visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories on 10-13 January.

China-Britain Business Council

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made for the implication of its policies of the Chinese-British Business Council and its ties to the United Front Work Department and the Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made for the implications of its policies of the Chinese-British Business Council’s work with Confucius Institutes and their potential links with the United Front Work Department and the Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK Government is committed to supporting UK businesses and academia to engage with China in a way that reflects the UK's values and takes account of national security concerns. The UK is a world-leading destination for international students and we have robust procedures in place to protect against any undue foreign influence.

Mozambique: Storms

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the impact of Cyclone Cheneso on (a) humanitarian need, (b) development and c) the sovereign fiscal position in Mozambique; and what support he has offered to the Government of that country following that cyclone.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The FCDO provides humanitarian assistance in Mozambique. This includes working closely with local and international partners, and the Government of Mozambique to support efforts in disaster planning and response e.g. by providing emergency assistance for those displaced, and by funding partners to pre-position emergency shelter and non-food items. Tropical Storm Cheneso affected nearly 32,000 households, with a loss of electricity, and localised flooding. The Government of Mozambique has a disaster response plan which they partly fund. However, they may request support from international donors for larger disasters which they have not yet done for Storm Cheneso.

China-Britain Business Council

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of the Chinese-British Business Council and its ties to the United Front Work Department and the Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK Government is committed to supporting UK businesses to engage with China in a way that reflects the UK's values and takes account of national security concerns.

India: Religious Freedom

Carla Lockhart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Government of India on (a) attacks against Christians in Chhattisgarh and (b) promoting freedom of religious belief in that country.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for all, and to the promotion of respect and tolerance between communities. We condemn any instances of discrimination, regardless of the country or faith involved. We continue to monitor reports of violence against religious minorities in India, including Christians in Chattisgarh, raising concerns directly with the Government of India when we have them. Our High Commissioner regularly meets religious representatives, including Christian communities. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad, Minister for South Asia, regularly speaks to the High Commissioner of India and freedom of religion or belief forms part of that dialogue.

Confucius Institutes

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential relationship between Confucius Institutes in the UK and the (a) United Front Work Department and (b) Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The Government is committed to supporting the UK education sector to engage with China in a way that reflects the UK's values and takes account of national security concerns. Where we have clear evidence of behaviours that threaten our national security, we will of course act accordingly. However, as a matter of long-standing policy we will not comment on intelligence matters.

Land Mines: Bomb Disposal

Jo Gideon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to support the clearance of (a) landmines and (b) other explosive remnants of war in conflict-affected countries across the world.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: This Financial Year, the Global Mine Action Programme (GMAP) has been working with the HALO Trust and the Mines Advisory Group to support the clearance of landmines and other explosive remnants of war in Angola, Cambodia, Laos, Somalia, South Sudan, Ukraine and Zimbabwe. GMAP also has a live tender out for Afghanistan. Between April and December 2022, GMAP cleared and confirmed safe over 4.9 million square metres of land. The Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) has also been funding mine action projects as part of wider stabilisation and conflict programming in Ukraine, the Caucasus, Libya, Sri Lanka and Yemen.

Middle East: Fenethylline

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the involvement of Hezbollah in the captagon trade.

David Rutley: The Syrian regime's reliance on illicit profits gained from captagon increases regional instability and strengthens Russian and Iranian influence in the region. In particular, Hezbollah benefits from captagon, using their knowledge of narcotic trading routes, political connections, and security infrastructure to expand the production and trafficking of this narcotic. Known Hezbollah drug lords and leaders have been implicated in seizures and work closely with Syria's military 'fourth division' to facilitate smuggling efforts. Hezbollah is proscribed by the UK, and we maintain an asset freeze against the organisation and are working to ensure they cannot continue to profit from this trade.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of Afghan nationals in Pakistan at risk of being deported from that country.

Leo Docherty: We are aware of media reports of Afghans without legal status being deported by the Pakistani authorities, but do not hold data on the number potentially affected. We are not aware of Afghans in Pakistan eligible for resettlement in the UK under the MOD-led ARAP or Home Office-led ACRS schemes being affected. Supporting the resettlement of eligible Afghans remains an HMG priority.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the safety of Afghan nationals in Pakistan after the conclusion of illegal immigration amnesty by the Government of Pakistan.

Leo Docherty: At any given time there may be Afghans visiting Pakistan for work, study or leisure. There are also a number of Afghan refugees in Pakistan. The UK is working with the Government of Pakistan to support them and encourage their inclusion in services provided to the wider population. We are a member of the policy group, Solutions Strategy for Afghan Refugees, which supports long-term solutions for Afghan refugees in Pakistan. The UK has provided £6.5 million to support refugee preparedness in Pakistan. The Foreign Secretary discussed this issue when he spoke to Foreign Minister Bhutto-Zadari on 20 December 2022.

Ministry of Defence

Harland and Wolff: Welding

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Harland and Wolff are contractually obliged to create a welding academy under the terms of the Fleet Solid Support Ship contract.

Alex Chalk: Team Resolute has committed to the Harland & Wolff welding academy as part of its social value and training plans under the Fleet Solid Support ship contract. Team Resolute is obliged by the contract to deliver the social value and training plan.

Hightown Barracks: Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family Accommodation and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at Hightown Barracks; and how many personnel are based at those Barracks.

Alex Chalk: Hightown Barracks is a training estate and does not have any Service Family Accommodation (SFA) or Single Living Accommodation (SLA) units. There are 154 established regular, reserve and civilian posts at Hightown Barracks.

Fleet Solid Support Ships: Procurement

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many compliant final submission bids were received by his Department for the Fleet Solid Support Ship contract.

Alex Chalk: The Fleet Solid Support ship competition followed an iterative competitive process that was run strictly as set out in the rules contained in the Invitation to Negotiate. This included the application of the evaluation criteria and a bidder engagement and contract negotiation programme affording all bidders several opportunities over a ten-month period to meet with Ministry of Defence officials to receive feedback on their proposed solutions and extensively refine their bids, within the parameters of the competition. The Department received one compliant final bid submission.

Ajax Vehicles: Procurement

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his letter to the right hon. Member for North Durham on legal costs incurred during the Armoured Cavalry programme, whether he expects the costs of attaining legal advice is expected to increase in the near future.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his letter to the right hon. Member for North Durham on legal costs incurred during the Armoured Cavalry programme, which law firm those payments have been paid to.

Alex Chalk: The Ministry of Defence have paid for and used the services of the Government Legal Department and Slaughter and May. The Armoured Cavalry programme will continue to seek legal advice as necessary to successfully deliver the programme, it is therefore expected that future costs will be incurred as necessary.

Ukraine: Military Aid

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Statement of 20 December 2022 on Ukraine, Official Report column 160, when he plans to have a debate on the action plan for Ukraine in 2023.

James Heappey: We are committed to keeping the House updated on developments in Ukraine, as we have done and continue to do, since last year's illegal invasion. The Secretary of State for Defence provided an update on Ukraine to the House on 16 January 2023, and the Minister for Defence Procurement provided an update on 26 January, which facilitated questions in the House.

Autonomous Weapons: Human Rights

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe of Friday 27 January 2023 on Emergence of lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) and their necessary apprehension through European human rights law.

Alex Chalk: The Ministry of Defence has set out its position on lethal autonomous weapons systems in the Defence AI Strategy and accompanying Ambitious, Safe and Responsible policy paper. The UK does not possess fully autonomous weapons systems and has no intention of developing them. The UK considers that the provisions of international law - particularly International Humanitarian Law - and existing regulatory frameworks are appropriate to new weapons systems and capabilities.The UK has a developed and considered position and continues to take a proactive role in discussions within international fora. The UK is committed to the Group of Government Experts on LAWS under the auspices of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons which is the right forum for taking the debate forward. These are complicated and nuanced issues and given the complexities we need a pragmatic approach based on agreed norms and rules of the road.

Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Retained EU Law Bill, whether he plans to (a) revoke, (b) retain or (c) replace The Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011 (DSPCR).

Alex Chalk: The Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011 (DSPCR) will be revoked once the new procurement regime under the Procurement Bill, which includes Defence provisions and is currently going through Parliament, comes into effect. To prevent a gap in statutory procurement regulation arising from the 'sunset' clause in the Retained EU Law (REUL) Bill revoking the DSPCR and other procurement regulations before the procurement regime under the Procurement Bill comes into effect, the DSPCR, along with the other public procurement regulations, will be saved using the powers in the REUL Bill. This allows the current procurement regulations to continue to apply until the new procurement regime is ready.

Artillery: Procurement

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether both tracked and wheeled solutions will be considered for the Mobile Fires Platform; and if he will take steps to ensure that all companies that have expressed interest in the Mobile Fires Platform and  have responded to Requests for Information will have an opportunity to submit proposals for an interim solution.

Alex Chalk: Work is ongoing to evaluate potential vehicle types against the requirements for the Mobile Fires Platform, with delivery being accelerated to bring this capability into service earlier this decade. In line with the Defence Secretary’s announcement to the House on 16 January, the Army is looking at solutions for an interim artillery capability, however it would be inappropriate to comment further whilst commercial options are being explored.

Claro Barracks: Closures

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Defence Estate Optimisation Portfolio published in November 2016, what the (a) original and (b)  updated projected estimate was of savings to his Department of the planned disposal of Claro Barracks by 2019.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the House of Commons Report: Disposal Database, updated in June 2022, what the cost to his Department will be of maintaining ownership of Claro Barracks until 2026.

Alex Chalk: The move of 21 Engr Regt from Claro Barracks to Marne Barracks is part of the single biggest estates change programme within Defence that will invest £5.1 billion in a more modern and sustainable estate that improves security and resilience, and also achieves significant social benefits and running cost savings of c£4.9 billion through the disposal of surplus sites.

Hightown Barracks

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what is the (a) size in hectares and (b) Housing Unit Potential of Hightown Barracks.

Alex Chalk: Hightown Barracks is some 3.5 hectares in size No assessment has been made of the Housing Unit Potential of the site, as it has not been identified for disposal.

Reserve Forces

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he (a) received and (b) plans to publish the Reserves Forces' and Cadets' Association External Scrutiny Team 2022 Report.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Reserves Forces' and Cadets' Association External Scrutiny Team 2022 Report was received on 8 September 2022. The Secretary of State for Defence will issue a full Departmental response to the report in the coming weeks. A copy of the report and the response will be placed in the Library of the House together.

Department for Work and Pensions

Department for Work and Pensions: South Tyneside

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much money South Tyneside Council has returned to his Department from grants allocated in December 2022.

Mims Davies: DWP can confirm that no grants were allocated to South Tyneside Council in December 2022 nor any returns made in December 2022 and January 2023.

Employment: Specific Learning Difficulties

Nadia Whittome: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support people with learning difficulties in Nottingham East constituency who are seeking paid employment.

Tom Pursglove: The Government is committed to supporting claimants with learning difficulties in Nottingham, and across the country, move closer to the labour market or into work.Learning disabled and autistic young people on their transition to employment can benefit from supported internships, which are aimed at young people with a learning disability or autism who have an Education, Health, and Care (EHC) plan. Supported internships usually last for 12 months and provide support from a specialist job coach. Whilst the Department for Education lead on this in England, the Department for Work and Pensions provides support through Access to Work where needed.Additional Work Coach support for health journey claimants is a new Work Coach led support offer, which aims to help more disabled people and claimants with a health condition into, and towards, work. Our Disability Employment Advisers (DEAs) deliver direct support to claimants who require additional work-related support and advice above our core Work Coach offer. DEAs continue to support all Work Coaches to deliver tailored, personalised support to all claimants with a disability or health condition.People in particular disadvantaged groups can continue to benefit from support through the increased Flexible Support Fund and early priority access to the Work and Health Programme. In addition, the Intensive Personalised Employment Support provision provides highly personalised packages of employment support for disabled people who want to work, but have complex needs or barriers and require specialist support to achieve sustained employment. Many disabled people can benefit from Access to Work, which is a demand-led discretionary grant scheme that provides funding for the extra disability-related costs people have when starting work, or maintaining employment. It can also support disabled people on an apprenticeship, traineeship, or Supported Internship.We are working with employers to encourage them to become Disability Confident. The Disability Confident scheme encourages employers to take positive action to address the issues disabled employees face and improve their ability to recruit and retain disabled people.Within Nottingham, our DEA’s can also refer claimants who require additional support to local initiatives, such as the Nottingham City Council’s Ways into Work Supported Employment Service, and the Well for Work programme, which helps people who are unemployed and facing health, language, or financial barriers to improve their wellbeing and find work.

Department for Work and Pensions: Conditions of Employment

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if they will take steps to (a) publish an equality impact assessment and (b) consult with trade unions when proposing new HR policies for their Department; and if they will make a statement.

Mims Davies: The Department for Work and Pensions is committed to meeting its obligations under the Equality Act 2010 with regard to producing Equality Analyses when considering changes which may have an impact on colleagues with protected characteristics as defined by the Equality Act 2010. The Department consults on new HR policies in line with its Employee Relations Framework.

Department for Work and Pensions: Freedom of Information

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2023 to Question 131311 on Department for Work and Pensions: Freedom of Information, on what day the decision to cease publishing Freedom of Information responses was made.

Mims Davies: No explicit decision has ever been made. This was simply a change in process that occurred naturally over time.

Department for Work and Pensions: Holiday Leave

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has notified staff to (a) tell or (b) remind them that they can sell annual leave in the last four months.

Mims Davies: DWP has an existing facility for colleagues to exchange untaken contractual leave for payment in the last month of their annual leave year. There is no consistent annual leave year for colleagues across DWP. From 4 January to 31 January 2023, DWP is running a specific exercise where colleagues can voluntarily request a payment for a maximum of five days of untaken contractual annual leave that they do not want to take, regardless of when their annual leave year ends. Colleagues cannot request to be paid for statutory leave. Taking part in the exercise is completely voluntary, employees physical and mental wellbeing remains a key priority for the department, and everyone is encouraged to use their annual leave to relax and recuperate wherever possible. Colleagues were informed of this opportunity 4 January 2023, and reminders were issued 13, 25 and 27 January 2023.

Universal Credit

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children live in households in receipt of Universal Credit in each parliamentary constituency in the most recent month for which data is available.

Guy Opperman: Statistics on the number of households in receipt of Universal Credit are published every three months. The latest statistics are available by the number of children in the household and by Westminster Parliamentary Constituency, to August 2022, on Stat-Xplore.

Universal Credit

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will publish a list of the triggers used by officials in his Department which would encourage claimants to migrate to Universal Credit.

Guy Opperman: On 10 January, the department published Completing the move to Universal Credit: Learning from the Discovery Phase - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) which details our approach in contacting claimants during the Earliest Testable Service (ETS). We will continue to test and learn what claimants need to enable them to move to UC, as we go forward.

Universal Credit: Young People

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of effectiveness of Universal Credit provisions on supporting young people under 25 on low incomes or out of work.

Mims Davies: The DWP Youth Offer provides individually tailored work coach support to young people aged 16 to 24 who are in the Universal Credit Intensive Work Search group. This includes the Youth Employment Programme, Youth Employability Coaches for young people with additional barriers to finding work, and Youth Hubs across Great Britain.The Youth Offer is subject to a Process Evaluation, with full findings expected to be shared internally by late 2023. This will inform any improvements or future changes to the Youth Offer policy. The evaluation plans which involve hearing from young people from a range of backgrounds and circumstances and those that work with them, on the services they receive to understand their effectiveness and enable us to make improvements as appropriate.In addition, the Kickstart evaluation will continue to assess the longer-term outcomes for Kickstart participants after they have completed their six-month jobs. The commissioned process evaluation will conclude in Spring 2023.

Personal Independence Payment: Huntington's Disease

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance is provided to assist Personal Independence Payment assessors making decisions on a person with Huntington's disease; and if he will publish a copy of that guidance.

Tom Pursglove: The Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment considers the impact of all conditions on an individual’s ability to live independently, not just the nature and severity of their impairment. The role of the assessment provider (AP) is to provide independent advice against a series of activities set out in legislation and devised by the department. The decision on benefit entitlement rests with the DWP, not the AP. The department has not specified that APs employ health professionals (HPs) who are specialists in specific conditions or impairments. Instead, the emphasis is on ensuring they are experts in disability analysis, focusing on the effects of health conditions and impairments on the individual’s daily life. All PIP HPs have access to a Condition Insight Report (CIR) on Huntington’s disease, compiled in collaboration with the Huntington’s Disease Association. We have no plans to publish this guidance as it is intended for internal use only.

Personal Independence Payment: Huntington's Disease

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, (a) in the last five years, how many people with Huntington's disease (i) made a claim for Personal Independence Payment, (ii) were refused and (iii) were successful on appeal; (b) what was the cost of those successful appeals; (c) in the last five years, how many people with Huntington's disease in receipt of Personal Independence Payment (i) were reassessed, (ii) were declined and (iii) were successful on appeal; and (d) what was the cost of those reapplications and successful appeals.

Tom Pursglove: a) Based on initial decisions made in the last five years (01 July 2017 to 30 June 2022), for claimants whose primary disabling condition at initial assessment is Huntington’s disease:i) 1,900 claimants made a claim for Personal Independence Payment (PIP);ii) Of these, 330 claimants were disallowed post assessment; andiii) Of these who had their decision initially disallowed, 50 claimants had an appeal lapsed or overturned at tribunal. b) The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. c) Based on initial decisions made in the last five years (01 July 2017 to 30 June 2022), for claimants whose primary disabling condition at initial assessment is Huntington’s disease:i) 700 claimants had their PIP award reviewed because of a planned award review or change of circumstance;ii) Of these, 30 claimants were disallowed post assessment; andiii) Of these who had their decision initially disallowed, 10 claimants had an appeal lapsed or overturned at tribunal. d) The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.  Please note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.Data is based on primary disabling condition as recorded on the PIP computer system. Claimants may often have multiple disabling conditions upon which the decision is based, but only the primary condition is shown in these statistics.We have provided data for England and Wales (excluding Scotland) in line with the latest published figures on PIP.These figures include initial decisions following assessment for PIP New Claims and Reassessments from 01 July 2017 up to 30 June 2022, the latest date for which published data is available.These figures include appeal decisions at a tribunal hearing up to 31 September 2022, the latest date for which published data is available. Note that more appeals could be made and completed after September 2022, so numbers could go up as it can take some time for an appeal to be lodged and then cleared after the initial decision.Figures in part c) are unpublished and may be subject to future revisions.Prior to tribunal appeal, claimants must have requested a mandatory reconsideration (MR) from the DWP. Some of those disallowed following assessment will have their decision changed at this stage and take the dispute no further. In some cases, a claimant who has their disallowed decision changed at MR will continue to appeal for a higher PIP award, and these cases could be included in the figures reported.A lapsed appeal is where the DWP changed the decision in the customer’s favour after an appeal was lodged, but before it was heard at a tribunal hearing.

Universal Credit

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Universal Credit claimants were undertaking training or education that counted towards their work-related requirements in the 12 most recent assessment periods for which data is available.

Guy Opperman: The requested information is not held.

Universal Credit: Nurses

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Universal Credit claimants were employed as nurses for the 12 most recent assessment periods for which data is available.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many teachers claimed Universal Credit in the each of the last 12 months.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Universal Credit claimants were employed as carers in the 12 most recent assessment periods for which data is available.

Guy Opperman: The requested information is not held.

Menopause: Employment

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to help support women experiencing the menopause in the workplace in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England.

Mims Davies: In July 2021, DWP asked members of the 50PLUS Roundtable on older workers to look at the important issue of menopause and employment, given the impact menopause can have on women’s working lives, particularly in the latter stages of their careers. An independent ‘menopause and the workplace’ report was published later in 2021 and the Government’s response was outlined in July 2022. The Government has again committed, in its response to Recommendation 6 of the Women and Equalities Select Committees report: Menopause and the Workplace, that they will appoint a DWP Menopause Employment Champion. The Menopause Employment Champion will work with the Women’s Health Ambassador on the topic of menopause and employment and drive forward work with employers on menopause workplace issues and spearhead the proposed collaborative employer-led campaign as outlined in the independent report.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Holiday Leave

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has notified staff to (a) tell or (b) remind them that they can sell annual leave in the last four months.

Mark Spencer: a) No and b) No.

Dogs: Animal Breeding

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to protect dogs from unregulated breeding clinics.

Rebecca Pow: Under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (the 2018 Regulations), anyone in the business of breeding and selling dogs and/or who breeds three or more litters in a twelve-month period needs to have a valid licence from their local authority. All dog breeders, including canine fertility clinics who do not meet the threshold for licensing under the 2018 Regulations, are obliged under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to protect their animals from suffering and provide for their welfare needs in line with best practice. A breach of these provisions may lead to imprisonment, a fine, or both.

Pet Travel Scheme: Cats

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many cats were imported into the UK through the Pet Travel Scheme in each month in 2022.

Rebecca Pow: 2022Total number of Non-Commercial CatsJanuary2587February1886March1707April2310May1903June2161July2354August3915September7855October3059November2222December2332The data regarding the Pet Travel Scheme covers pets entering Great Britain and is based on information provided by checkers employed by approved carriers of pet animals.

Dogs: Imports

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many dogs were commercially imported into Great Britain in each month of 2022.

Rebecca Pow: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 12 January to PQ 119251.

Game: Birds

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of released gamebirds in captive bird operations are registered with the Animal and Plant Health Agency.

Mark Spencer: Under avian influenza rules in England, gamebirds include pheasants, partridges, ptarmigan, grouse or moor game, black (or heath) game and ducks bred for shooting, and once game birds have been released, they are classed as wild birds. The person who released the gamebirds is no longer classed as the keeper of the birds. Prior to release, gamebirds are classified as kept poultry.Registration with the Animal Plant Health Agency is mandatory for all keepers of over 50 poultry (voluntary registration is also available for all bird keepers with less than 50 birds). 8857 gamebird establishments are currently registered with APHA. Local authorities are responsible for enforcement of both avian influenza disease control rules and poultry registration. Defra and APHA do not hold data on the level of compliance with poultry registration requirements amongst establishments that release game-birds.

Game: Birds

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many release sites for non-native gamebirds there are in the UK.

Mark Spencer: The Government does not hold information on the total number of gamebird releases or their locations in the UK. However, Natural England holds data about the release of common pheasant and red-legged partridge undertaken within or close to European Protected Sites in England. In 2022 there were 235 such release locations.

Game: Birds

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing additional regulation on the (a) data collection, (b) reporting, (c) management and (d) release of non-native gamebirds in the UK.

Mark Spencer: This is an area covered by devolved policy responsibility. We currently have no plans to introduce additional regulation in regard to non-native gamebirds. Defra continues to keep the policy and regulatory framework for the release of non-native gamebirds in England under review. This assessment will take account of the outcomes of any relevant risk assessments and the ongoing avian influenza outbreak.

Water Charges

Liz Twist: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of introducing a single social tariff for water.

Rebecca Pow: As the Secretary of State stated during the House of Lords inquiry into the work of Ofwat, Defra is minded not to introduce a single social tariff scheme due to the complexities involved with a national scheme, as well as due to legislative timetables, which would mean we would not be able to introduce a single social tariff to align with the start of the next price review – 1 April 2025. However, I am very mindful that consumers are concerned about their bills. My officials continue to explore options to improve existing social tariff arrangements, focussing on improving consistency and fairness across existing regional social tariff schemes - a sensible and pragmatic approach given time constraints.

Internal Drainage Boards

Brendan Clarke-Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to (a) mitigate the costs to (i) local councils and (ii) landowners of internal drainage boards and (b) ensure (A)  Bassetlaw and (B) surrounding areas are protected from flooding.

Rebecca Pow: The Government is investing a record £5.2 billion between 2021 to 2027, in around 2,000 flood defences to better protect communities across England. Within the Bassetlaw area, from 2021/22 to the end of 2022/23 the Environment Agency will have spent over £2m of Government Grant in Aid. The Environment Agency works with internal drainage boards (IDBs), including the IDB facing the Bassetlaw District, to help ensure the Environment Agency spends both its flood asset maintenance funding allocation and the precept (raised from IDBs) in areas that provide the greatest flood risk benefit. IDBs are independent locally funded and operated, statutory public bodies. They are mainly funded by the beneficiaries of their work receiving drainage rates from farmers/landowners and special levies from local authorities. The Government recognises the ongoing pressure the public sector is experiencing due to high energy prices and has extended energy support for a further 12 months through the Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) which will succeed the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) on 1st April and for which IDBs and all other public bodies are eligible. The Government has also written to Ofgem regarding unfair practice in the energy sector, including increases in standing charges, and Ofgem will continue to monitor this situation. Defra will continue to work with the Environment Agency, IDBs and across Government to identify how collectively we can minimise the risks and continue to provide protection and resilience to our communities through this period.

Packaging: Recycling

Greg Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed new extended producer responsibility scheme on (a) retailers, (b) food and drink manufacturers and (c) other producers affected by that scheme in the UK.

Rebecca Pow: We published an Impact Assessment alongside the Government Response to the consultation on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging setting out the costs and benefits of the policy. This includes the potential impact on obligated businesses. We continue to engage with obligated businesses as we prepare for implementation and as we develop the next phases of EPR.

Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Retained EU Law Bill, whether she plans to (a) revoke, (b) retain or (c) replace the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016.

Rebecca Pow: Defra is in the process of analysing and assessing its retained EU law stock to determine what should be preserved as part of domestic law, and what should be repealed, or amended. This work will determine how we use the powers in the Bill, including in relation to the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016.

Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Retained EU Law Bill, whether she plans to (a) revoke, (b) retain or (c) replace The Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994.

Rebecca Pow: Defra is in the process of analysing and assessing its retained EU law stock to determine what should be preserved as part of domestic law, and what should be repealed, or amended. This work will determine how we use the powers in the Bill, including in relation to the Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994.

Floods: Sewers

Dean Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps her Department has taken to monitor storm overflows.

Rebecca Pow: No government has done more to tackle the issue of storm overflow discharges. Last year this Government launched The Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan. This will require water companies to deliver their largest infrastructure programme in water company history – a £56 billion capital investment over 25 years.We are taking action now. Between 2020 and 2025 water companies are investing £3.1 billion in storm overflow improvements. We have increased the number of storm overflows monitored across the network from 5% in 2016 to almost 90% now, and we will reach 100% cover by the end of the year. All the data is published online.

Home Office

Asylum: Finance

Zarah Sultana: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to announce the outcome of the review into asylum support rates.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office has a legal obligation to provide support to asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute. The support package provided usually consists of free, furnished accommodation (with utility bills and council tax paid) and a weekly cash allowance to meet other essential living needs.From 21 December 2022 the government increased the main rate of asylum support that is provided under sections 4 and 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 to £45 per week on an interim basis whilst we complete the current annual review of the asylum support allowance.

Nawaz Sharif

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr Nawaz Sharif, applied for leave to remain in the UK.

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, applied for an anonymity order in relation to an application for leave to remain.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office does not comment on individual cases.

Asylum: Children

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the response to the Urgent Question on 24 January 2023 on Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking Children, Official Report column 859, whether in the welfare interview children are explicitly informed (a) that they will not be sent to Rwanda, (b) of their rights as a child seeking asylum in the UK, (c) of the risks to them of people seeking to exploit children staying in asylum hotels, (d) of advice to stay safe and (e) about how to seek help if in difficulty.

Robert Jenrick: The purpose of a welfare interview is to ascertain the physical and emotional state of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) as well as to obtain some basic information about themselves and their family, their journey to the United Kingdom and any links they may have in the United Kingdom. During the welfare interview, our UASC children are not informed of the points raised. This information is relayed to each UASC child upon arrival at their accommodation.

Asylum: Greater London

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum claims have been open for longer than one year in (a) Ilford North constituency and (b) the London Borough of Redbridge.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum applications awaiting a decision can be found in table Asy_D03 of the ‘asylum and resettlement detailed datasets’. Data on asylum seekers by local authority is published only for those in receipt of support, in table Asy_D11 of the ‘asylum and resettlement detailed datasets’.Information on how to use the datasets can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbooks. The data show a snapshot of people awaiting an initial decision or in receipt of support as at 30 September 2022, rather than over the entire quarter. Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.

Visas: Agriculture

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the short-term visa scheme for poultry workers; and what steps her Department is taking to help prevent workers on that scheme from being in debt bondage.

Robert Jenrick: In November 2021 we introduced a temporary concession enabling poultry workers to be recruited via the Seasonal Worker route, to ensure that there were sufficient workers to cover the surge in poultry production and preparation during the festive season. This received a positive response from the sector and received a good uptake, therefore we included provision for pre-Christmas poultry workers within the main Seasonal Worker route from Autumn 2022. The Seasonal Worker scheme operators are responsible for managing all aspects of the recruitment and placement of workers on UK farms and ensuring their welfare in the UK. This includes ensuring ethical recruitment practices, in line with Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority regulations.We take the welfare of migrant workers extremely seriously and we are committed to working with DEFRA and the GLAA in order to ensure that workers are not subject to mistreatment, abuse or fall in debt bondage and that their time in the UK is positive and productive.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Departments, how many Afghan citizens have been resettled in the UK since August 2021.

Robert Jenrick: The latest operational data, effective at Friday 4 November 2022, shows that, since August 2021, the UK has issued a grant of Leave to Remain to 12,296 individuals who are eligible for resettlement or relocation under the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) or Afghan Relocation & Assistance Policy (ARAP)More information is available at:Afghan Resettlement Programme: operational data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Asylum: Staff

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 December 2022 on Asylum, how many decision makers were in post as of 13 December 2022.

Robert Jenrick: There were 1280 decision makers in post as of 13 December 2022. This equates to 1246.76 full time equivalent (FTE) decision makers. This is double the FTE decision makers in 2021/2022 and we are continuing to recruit more decision makers to help clear the asylum backlog by the end of 2023.

Asylum: Children

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the response to the Urgent Question on 24 January 2023 on Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking Children, Official Report column 859, of the 200 children who remain missing, what information does her Department hold on the number of days each child has been missing; and if she will make it her policy to publish regular data on the number of (a) children missing from bridging hotels and (b) days those children have been missing.

Robert Jenrick: There are currently no children missing from bridging hotels; bridging hotels are not utilised for asylum accommodation and do not house Unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC).There are no plans to publicly publish data around missing UASC as this data is not held in a reportable format and it would require a manual search of records which would incur a disproportionate cost.

Migrant Help: Members

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has instructed Migrant Help not to respond to enquiries from Rt hon. and hon. Members.

Robert Jenrick: There is an agreement between Migrant Help and the Home Office for Migrant Help to refer correspondence to MP Account Management (MPAM) who then liaise with relevant Home Office officials to respond.

Slavery

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to appoint an Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner.

Robert Jenrick: The role of the Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC) as set out in the 2015 Modern Slavery Act is to encourage good practice in the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of slavery and human trafficking offences and the identification of victims. The Home Secretary recognises the importance of the role of Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner and has committed to running a new open competition to recruit for this role. This process will begin shortly. The competition will be conducted as quickly as possible, whilst ensuring we take the necessary steps to recruit the best person for the role.

Cars: Hire Services

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to tackle the fraudulent and criminal behaviour of car-hire companies which operate in tandem with organised crime to (a) use and (b) steal motor vehicles of customers.

Tom Tugendhat: The Government takes the issue of fraud very seriously and is dedicated to protecting the public from this devastating crime, including those perpetrated by organised criminals.We will shortly publish a new strategy to address the threat of fraud.

Police Custody: Children in Care

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with (a) local authorities, (b) police forces and (c) Cabinet colleagues on the detention of looked after children in police custody.

Chris Philp: The Home Office part funds the National Association of Appropriate Adults (NAAN), which supports organisations providing appropriate adult services to young people and vulnerable adults in police custody. More information regarding standards and training can be found at https://www.appropriateadult.org.uk/. We regularly engage with the NAAN to discuss the provision of training to Appropriate Adults across England and Wales.There is ongoing academic research on the detention and questioning of children and young people being carried out by the Nuffield Foundation. We await the final recommendations from this report. The Government maintains that children should only be detained in custody as a last resort and any opportunities to divert children away from custody should be taken. Detailed police custody data was published for the first time on 17 November 2022 in the Police Powers and Procedures Bulletin. This data provides more transparency on children in custody.At this stage it does not include data on looked after children. However, we recognise specific concerns around children in custody who are recognised as a vulnerable group. We published the Concordat on Children in Custody in 2017 which clearly sets out the statutory duties of the police and local authorities and provides a protocol for how transfers of children from custody to local authority accommodation should work in practice.The Government is clear that children should only be detained in custody when absolutely necessary and where there are opportunities to divert children away from custody, these must be considered.

Fenethylline: Drug Seizures

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many seizures of captagon tablets there have been in each of the last five years.

Chris Philp: Home Office data records show one seizure of Fenethylline (street name Captagon) seized by police and zero seizures by Border Force over the last 5 years.Home Office publish data on seizures made by police and Border Force for England and Wales annually at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/seizures-of-drugs-in-england-and-wales.

M25: Protest

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to prevent protests from disrupting traffic on the M25.

Chris Philp: The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 is already in force. This raised the maximum penalty for wilful obstruction of the highway, ensuring offenders can receive proportionate sentences for the disruption they cause.The Public Order Bill is now passing through Parliament and will improve the police’s ability to respond to highly disruptive tactics. For example, lock-on offence and the associated stop and search power will allow the police to pro-actively prevent the selfish minority of protesters causing serious disruption on our roads.The Government have tabled an amendment to the Bill which will allow the police to intervene before disruption occurs, enabling them to shut down protests before they descend into chaos. The amendment also allows the police to consider the total disruption caused by multiple events occurring at the same time or in close proximity, as well as long-running campaigns designed to cause repeat disruption over a period of days or weeks.

Nitrous Oxide: Misuse

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made on introducing additional legislative proposals to prevent the misuse of Nitrous Oxide.

Chris Philp: Nitrous oxide is one of the most commonly-used drugs among 16-24-year-olds in England and the Government is concerned about the harms of nitrous oxide to those, often young people, who misuse this drug. That is why we are actively considering a ban on the sale and use of this harmful drug.It is already an offence under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 to import, export, produce, supply, offer to supply, or possess with intent to supply, nitrous oxide. For the offence to be made out, the defendant must intend to consume the substance, or know or be reckless as to whether it will be consumed by another person, for its psychoactive effect. These offences carry a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment, or a fine, or both. It is also an offence to possess nitrous oxide in a custodial institution, for which the maximum sentence is two years’ imprisonment, or a fine, or both. Medicinal products are exempted from these controls.In September 2021 the former Home Secretary requested the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) conduct an updated harms assessment of Nitrous Oxide and consider whether it should be considered for control under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.We are asking the ACMD to hasten their delivery of this report, which we will carefully consider before reaching any decision.

Grenfell Tower: Fires

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 January 2023 to Question 124017 on Grenfell Tower: Fires, if she will have discussions with the London Fire Commissioner on establishing a compensation fund for firefighters who attended the Grenfell fire and have subsequently been diagnosed with cancer.

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 January 2023 to Question 124018 on Grenfell Tower: Fires, whether her Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of the response of fire and rescue authorities to the health consequences for firefighters of attending the Grenfell Tower fire.

Chris Philp: The health and safety of firefighters is of great importance and local employers must be mindful of the academic research in this area. The Home Office will also review the recently published studies to fully understand their methodology.Fire and rescue services have the resources they need to do their important work and it is for individual fire and rescue authorities, as employers with responsibility for health and wellbeing, to ensure that firefighters receive the appropriate equipment and training they need to safely respond to the wide range of incidents which they attend.

Fire and Rescue Services: Injuries

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 January 2023 to Question 124016 on Fire and Rescue Services: Injuries, whether individual fire and rescue authorities are required to run compensation schemes for firefighters who suffer industrial injuries.

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding is available to fire and rescue authorities to establish industrial injury compensation schemes for employees.

Chris Philp: The Firefighters’ Compensation Scheme is managed locally by each employing fire and rescue authority and provides injury cover to any firefighter where they suffer permanent disablement whilst undertaking their role and can no longer continue in their employment.Fire and rescue services have the resources they need to do their important work. Overall, fire and rescue authorities will receive around £2.5 billion in 2022/23. Standalone fire and rescue authorities will see an increase in core spending power of 6.2 per cent in cash terms compared to 2021/22.

Dangerous Dogs

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of Section 59 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 in preventing dog attacks involving more than four dogs.

Chris Philp: The Government is committed to tackling and preventing anti-social behaviour (ASB). We know the serious impact that persistent ASB can have on both individuals and the wider community.We provided the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of flexible tools and powers that they can use to respond quickly and effectively to ASB through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. Currently there are no plans to make an assessment of the effectiveness of Section 59 in preventing dog attacks involving more than four dogs.It is for local areas to decide how best to deploy these powers depending on the specific circumstances. They are best placed to understand what is driving the behaviour in question, the impact that it is having, and to determine the most appropriate response.The Home Office published statutory guidance to support local areas to make effective use of these powers. The guidance sets out the importance of focusing on the needs of the victim and the local community, as well as ensuring that the relevant legal tests are met. This guidance was updated in June 2022 to ensure a victim-centered approach to tackling ASB as well as stronger use of the powers and tools in the 2014 Act.

Hillsborough Families' Experiences Review

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to respond to the report by the Right Reverend James Jones The Patronising Disposition of Unaccountable Power, HC 511, published in January 2017; and if she will make a statement.

Chris Philp: The points of learning made by Bishop James Jones in his report span a number of departments and organisations and the Home Office is coordinating the Government’s overarching response to it.Whilst the timing of the Government’s response has been impacted by the need to avoid risk of prejudice during the Hillsborough criminal proceedings, work has been underway within the relevant departments and organisations to carefully consider and address those points of learning directed at the Government.As with all of the points of learning in the Bishop’s report, the Government will address the points of learning related to equality of arms at inquests and the duty of candour, as part of the full response.The Home Secretary is committed to engaging with the Hillsborough families prior to publication of the Government’s full response in due course.

Home Office: Recruitment

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department has spent on headhunters in each of the last three years.

Chris Philp: The Home Office does not report the information sought to the level of granularity required. To identify spending on head-hunters specifically from our management systems would require a manual review of all consultancy related transactions.This can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Police: DNA

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2023 to Question 129799 on Police: DNA, whether biometric vetting with consent always includes DNA testing against the police database; and whether the College of Policing's vetting authorised professional practice guidance is mandatory.

Chris Philp: Police forces are expected to carry out vetting in line with both the College of Policing’s statutory Vetting Code of Practice and Authorised Professional Practice (APP) guidance.The APP highlights that successful policing candidates will be asked to provide their fingerprints and a DNA sample by consent. These are checked against the relevant local and national databases before commencing employment.The APP is non-statutory guidance which supports the consistent application of the minimum standards of vetting, set out in the Vetting Code of Practice. Principle 4 of the Vetting Code of Practice highlights that police vetting should comply with the standards laid out in the APP.In light of significant concerns raised around vetting of the police workforce, the Home Secretary has recently asked the College of Policing to strengthen the Vetting Code of Practice to make the obligations all forces must legally follow stricter and clearer.

West Midlands Police: Staff

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) police officers and (b) Police Community Support Officers there were in the West Midlands Police Force in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2022.

Chris Philp: The Home Office collects and publishes data on the size of the police workforce in England and Wales, broken down by Police Force Area (PFA), on a bi-annual basis in the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin.Information on the number of police officers and Police Community Support Officers in each of the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales, as at 31 March each year, from 2007 to 2022 can be found in the ‘Workforce Open Data Table’. The latest mid-year figure, as at 30 September 2022, is also available in the data tables accompanying the latest ‘Police Workforce’ bulletin.While the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin remains the key measure of the size of the police workforce, as part of the Police Officer Uplift Programme, the Home Office also publishes a quarterly update on the number of officers (headcount terms only) in England and Wales, also broken down by PFA. Data as at 31 December 2022 are available here: Police Officer uplift statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).As at 31 December 2022, West Midlands Police has recruited 1,048 additional uplift officers against a total three year allocation of 1,218 officers.

British Citizenship: Applications

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many citizenship certificate requests were on hold due to IT issues preventing mandatory checks being completed as of 30 January 2023.

Robert Jenrick: No requests for a Citizenship certificate are on hold due to IT issues affecting mandatory checks being completed.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Private Rented Housing: Standards

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the role of Selective Licensing Schemes in improving housing standards in privately rented homes.

Felicity Buchan: A 2019 Independent Review looking into the use and effectiveness of selective licensing found overall that it is an effective tool with many schemes achieving positive outcomes, particularly when integrated with a wider, coherent housing strategy.

Leisure: York

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the urban playground concept; and if he will make an assessment of potential merits of piloting that scheme in York.

Lucy Frazer: The Government's National Planning Policy Framework encourages the creation of places that are well-designed, healthy, inclusive and safe. In support of this, the National Design Guide recognises the importance of designing public spaces and streets to support an active life for everyone, with activities for socialising, informal doorstep play, resting and movement.   In addition, the National Model Design Code guides the production of local design codes and encourages the design of children's play areas to be inclusive and accessible.

Woodhouse Colliery

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish the advice he has received from his officials on the coal mine in Whitehaven, Cumbria.

Lucy Frazer: The Secretary of State's decision, together with the report and recommendation of the independent planning Inspector were published on 7 December 2022. That decision is now the subject of legal challenges. It would not be appropriate to comment further.

Housing: Gravesham

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many new-build properties in Gravesham were allocated to each of the Council Tax Bands for the last 12 months for which data is available.

Lucy Frazer: Estimates of new-build properties delivered in Gravesham in each year, are shown in Live Table 123, at the following link.The Department does not centrally collect figures on the allocation of new-build properties by Council Tax Band. This information may be held locally by Gravesham district authority.

Homes for Ukraine Scheme

Danny Kruger: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what information his Department holds on what use local authorities have made of the £10,500 per-person funding provided under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme; and whether his Department provided guidance to local authorities on how that funding should be spent.

Felicity Buchan: Information and guidance on grant funding allocations for local authorities under the Homes for Ukraine scheme can be accessed here and here . DLUHC officials are in constant contact with counterparts in local authorities, and there are many examples of good practice and innovation by local authorities. Some have chosen to ‘top up’ the ‘thank you’ payments for hosts, others have extensive programmes to help arrivals into the private rented sector or employment. Inevitably, different locations will have differing specific needs, and have had particular successes or challenges.

Private Rented Housing: Pets

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the white paper entitled A fairer private rented sector, published on 16 June 2022, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to stop landlords from unreasonably withholding consent when a tenant requests to have a pet in their home.

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department's White Paper entitled A Fairer Private Rented Sector, what discussions he has had with the animal welfare sector on the potential impact of allowing landlords to require that tenants have pet insurance on pet owners.

Felicity Buchan: The Government has committed to giving tenants the right to request a pet that the landlord must consider and cannot unreasonably refuse. We will amend the Tenant Fees Act 2019 so that landlords can require insurance to cover damage to their property caused by pets.The Government has engaged a wide range of stakeholders from across the sector, including animal welfare charities, while developing these proposals. We will continue to do so, ahead of legislating as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Veterans: Homelessness

Dean Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to end homelessness among veterans in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) nationally.

Felicity Buchan: Data on households who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, for England including those in Hertfordshire show levels of veteran homelessness is low - less than 1% of households owed a homelessness duty had a member with a support need as a result of serving in the Armed Forces.Latest numbers for Hertfordshire can be found within the quarterly data publication ( April - June) available here (Table A3), which shows only 4 households had a support need due to service in the Armed Forces across the 10 council areas.For 22/23 local authorities have been provided with £366 million through the Homelessness Prevention Grant to meet their homelessness strategies, including support for homeless veterans, and the funding allocations can be found here. In addition, this Government recently announced a further £8.55 million to support the delivery of new veteran supported housing.

Rents

Kim Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department is taking steps to support tenants with rising rents in the context of the cost-of-living crisis; and if he will consider the potential merits of introducing a cap on shared ownership rent increases in line with the forthcoming cap on social housing rent increases.

Felicity Buchan: The Government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living and that paying rent is likely to be a tenant's biggest monthly expense. Individuals who need help towards their rental payments may be eligible for a range of support through the welfare system, in addition to the Government’s support for energy bills.In the social rented sector, the Government recently decided to cap rent increases at up to 7% for 2023-24. The Government is also pleased to note that housing associations responsible for over 90% of that sector's Shared Ownership homes have - through the National Housing Federation - voluntarily committed to limit annual Shared Ownership rent increases in 2023-24 to no more than 7%. The department is encouraging local authorities and for-profit providers to make the same voluntary commitment.

Buildings: Battersea

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many buildings in Battersea with interim safety measures in place were invited to take part in the Government’s Medium Rise Pilot Scheme.

Lee Rowley: The Mid-Rise Scheme Pilot has initially focused on a small number of buildings to prove the processes and seek early feedback before being opened to a wider cohort of buildings. No buildings in the Battersea constituency are within the pilot cohort of 73. We anticipate extending eligibility shortly.

Elections: Proof of Identity

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether the costs of administering the voter ID requirements for elections will be paid from council budgets or Government funding.

Lee Rowley: In line with longstanding government policy, new burdens funding has been provided to local authorities to clear additional costs as a result of these changes.Electoral fraud undermines the fundamental right to vote in free and fair elections. Photographic voter identification has operated successfully in Northern Ireland since 2003 when introduced by the last Labour Government.

Building Safety Fund: Battersea

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many buildings in Battersea were eligible for the Building Safety Fund as of 25 January 2023; and how much of that fund has been allocated for remediation works in Battersea.

Lee Rowley: As at 31 December 2022 there are 11 eligible buildings in Battersea in the Building Safety Fund and a total of £14,790,860 of funding has so far been approved.

Members: Correspondence

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities when he will reply to the letters from the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare dated 10thNovember and 14th December 2022 on behalf of hisconstituent,Nigel Campkin about building cladding.

Lee Rowley: A response was issued to my Hon. Friend's correspondence on 3 February 2023, following an internal review. I apologise for the delay and hope he finds the response helpful.

Buildings: Insurance

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Financial Conduct Authority's report entitled Report on insurance for multi‑occupancy buildings, published in September 2022, if he will take steps to implement that report's recommendations; and what steps he plans to take to reduce insurance premium costs for leaseholders in multi-occupancy buildings.

Lee Rowley: On the 30 January 2023, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced that we will take action to ban property managing agents, landlords and freeholders from receiving commissions and other payments from insurance firms, replacing such payments with more transparent fees.  Leaseholders will also have more information to enable them to better scrutinise their insurance costs, while also ensuring that leaseholders are not subject to unjustified legal costs and that they can claim their legal costs back from their landlord.   The FCA are currently undertaking their own review of high broker commission identified in their 21 September report which will be published in March 2023. I intend to meet the FCA again to discuss their work.On 1 December, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) confirmed they are working to launch a scheme to reduce high premiums for those in buildings with significant fire safety issues. Ministers will continue to monitor the progress of the scheme and have made clear that they expect the scheme to be delivered as soon as is feasible to provide urgent assistance to affected buildings.

Leasehold

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when his Department plans to publish the findings of the call for evidence for leaseholder-owned buildings.

Lee Rowley: The department published a call for evidence on leaseholder-owned buildings which closed on 14 November 2022. We are analysing the responses and will consider the feedback prior to publication.

Environmental Health and Housing: Local Government Finance

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing adequate funding to local authorities to ensure the sustainability of (a) environmental health and (b) local housing enforcement teams.

Lee Rowley: The provisional Local Government Finance Settlement for 2023/24 makes available an additional £3 billion of taxpayer subsidy to councils in England, before local decisions about council tax changes are made. Councils can also make their own decisions to increase council tax by up to a further 3%, plus a further 2% for adult social care, should they deem it appropriate and proportionate to do so.Taken together, this could mean an increase of 9% in cash terms compared to 2022/23.The majority of this funding is un-ringfenced in recognition of councils being best placed to understand local priorities.

Urban Areas: Audit

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of an audit of cities to determine how child and family friendly those cities are.

Dehenna Davison: While no assessment has been made of the merits of such an audit, I would welcome correspondence from the Hon. Member on the importance of this issue.

Regional Planning and Development: Scotland

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to encourage levelling up across Scotland.

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of his levelling up policies on Scotland.

Dehenna Davison: The Levelling Up missions set out our ambitions for the whole of the country. The Government is committed, through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, to introduce a statutory requirement to report annually on progress against the levelling up missions.

Retail Trade: Cost of Living

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the impact of the cost of living on high street spending in (a) York and (b) England.

Dehenna Davison: This Government is committed, through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, to reinvigorate high streets and town centres. We have been working closely with high street businesses to understand the impact of the cost of living crisis and to develop plans to help them and their customers.

Local Government: East Riding

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent progress his Department has made on negotiations with Hull City and East Riding of Yorkshire Councils on a county deal in the last 12 months; and if he will publish the minutes of meetings his Department has held with those councils.

Dehenna Davison: Since the Levelling Up White Paper was published the Government has signed six brand new devolution deals, with a particular focus on Level 3, mayoral devolution models. Those six deals represent over 7 million people across England, and mean that 8 of the 11 areas we identified for new devolution in the White Paper have now received a deal. We are in discussions with the three remaining places named on the White Paper, including Hull and East Riding of Yorkshire, about the appropriate model of devolution for them, and I am hoping to meet the leaders of the respective local authorities soon to continue this discussion.

Levelling Up Fund

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether local authorities that were successful in the first round of the Levelling Up Fund will be eligible to receive further levelling up funding.

Dehenna Davison: I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to Question UIN 129836 on 26 January 2023.

Scotland Office

Scotland Office: Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps their Department takes to comply with section 181 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992; and if they will make a statement.

Mr Alister Jack: The Scotland Office does not employ any staff directly; all staff that join do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government bodies, principally the Ministry of Justice and the Scottish Government, who remain the employers. The Ministry of Justice and the Scottish Government meet regularly with their recognised Trade Unions and present and share a range of information and data where it is appropriate and in line with privacy statements. This helps inform decision-making through formal negotiation and meaningful consultation and engagement. In doing so, the employing departments are complying with section 181 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. In addition, there is a range of HR information which is published on GOV.UK and is therefore publicly available.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office: Conditions of Employment

Chris Stephens: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if they will take steps to (a) publish an equality impact assessment and (b) consult with trade unions when proposing new HR policies for their Department; and if they will make a statement.

Alex Burghart: There is no legal requirement to publish duty assessment documentation, however, the relevant documentation is provided to staff and Trade Union colleagues upon request. The Cabinet Office adheres to the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) by completing an equality analysis for each HR policy that we update and/or introduce. This document records the analysis undertaken by the Cabinet Office to fulfil the requirements of the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) as set out in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. The department meets the requirement by paying due regard to the need to:Eliminate unlawful discrimination - direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, discrimination arising from disability, and harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the ActAdvance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share itFoster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not share it We do this by giving consideration to protected characteristics, as well as other groups not included within the list of protected characteristics within the Act, such as varying socio-economic groups. We consider Public Sector Equality Duty before and during policy or service formation, and monitor how the policy or service is working once a decision is implemented. Considering equality in this way is a part of normal day-to-day activity and not a one off exercise. The Cabinet Office meets regularly with Trade Union representatives. We share information and data requested on the Cabinet Office workforce where appropriate and in line with our privacy statements to help inform decision making. We regularly communicate and meet with our Trade Union colleagues and have a standard process for engaging with them. In the context of HR policies, this includes, but is not limited to sharing draft HR policies for review, discussion and comment and provides Trade Union colleagues with the opportunity to provide feedback prior to publication.

Public Sector: Procurement

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to strengthen national security through public procurement.

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to increase cyber resilience in public procurement.

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has taken recent steps to help support small and medium-sized enterprises bidding for public contracts.

Alex Burghart: The Procurement Bill, currently being considered by Parliament, significantly strengthens the grounds under which suppliers that present unacceptable risks can be prevented from participating in a procurement.As part of this, a new ground for exclusion will allow contracting authorities to exclude suppliers which pose a threat to national security. The Bill also provides flexibility for contracts to be upgraded to refresh technology and avoid gaps in capability.The Government has taken steps to help support small and medium-sized enterprises bidding for public contracts in a variety of ways - from transparently publishing contract pipelines to simplifying bidding processes. The new procurement regime will create a simpler and significantly more transparent system that will give opportunities for businesses of all sizes to compete for public sector work.The Bill includes a specific duty on contracting authorities to have regard to the particular barriers facing SMEs and strengthens prompt payment with 30 day payment terms applying contractually throughout the public sector supply chain.This is one of the ways we are helping grow the economy, creating better-paid jobs and opportunity right across the country - one of the Government’s five key priorities.

Crime: West Midlands

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of recorded knife crime incidents in the West Midlands Police force area in each year since 2015.

Jeremy Quin: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon. Member's Parliamentary Question of 31 January is attached. UKSA Response (pdf, 162.2KB)

Prime Minister: Railways

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the last time was the Prime Minister travelled for official business by train.

Jeremy Quin: The Prime Minister regularly travels by train. All Ministerial travel is undertaken using efficient and cost-effective travel arrangements.

Dengue Fever: Death

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many British nationals have died due to Dengue fever in the last ten years.

Jeremy Quin: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon. Member's Parliamentary Question of 26 January is attached. UKSA Response (pdf, 181.7KB)

Civil Servants: Strikes

Dan Carden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to reach a negotiated solution to the ongoing industrial dispute with members of the Public and Commercial Services Union.

Jeremy Quin: The industrial dispute with the Public and Commercial Services Union concerns a number of issues including pay. While pay for grades below the Senior Civil Service is determined by individual Departments and employers, we continue to engage with all Civil Service Trade Unions regarding cross Civil Service issues which are within the responsibilities of the Cabinet Office in attempting to help achieve a resolution.

Ministers: ICT

Dan Carden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the level of compliance with Security of Government Business Policy that Ministers must not use personal (a) devices, (b) emails or (c) communication apps for official business.

Jeremy Quin: The Government takes matters of security very seriously. Existing policy and guidance does not rule out the use of different forms of electronic communications in all circumstances. Government Departments routinely provide Ministers with advice and guidance on matters of security, including the appropriate management of Government information.

Prime Minister: Aviation

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on how many occasions the Prime Minister has travelled by non-scheduled flights since taking office.

Jeremy Quin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 16 January 2023, Official Report, PQ120144.

Department for International Trade

Food: Exports

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to help support the UK food industry to export into the EU.

Andrew Bowie: We support our food producers through all stages of their export journey to the EU. This includes the Export Support Service, GREAT.gov.uk platform, the Export Academy, UK Export Finance and high profile events and trade shows such as SIAL in France and Anuga in Germany. The Department for International Trade has a network of agriculture, food and drink trade advisers across EU markets overseen by our Trade Commissioner in Europe We have also established a new Food and Drink Export Council which brings together the UK Government, Devolved Administrations, and industry, to harness collective capability, expertise, and resources in boosting UK food and drink exports to global markets, including Europe.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Internet: Males

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January to Question 120898 on Internet: Males, if she will fund research online violence against men and boys.

Paul Scully: The government routinely undertakes research to enhance the online harms evidence base, as well as improve understanding of harms experienced by adults and children. A list of recently published research can be found at this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-harms-research-publications-december-2022Ofcom also conducts research into online harms. For example, Online Nation is an annual report by Ofcom that looks at what people are doing online, how they are served by online content providers and platforms, and their attitudes to and experiences of using the internet.

Public Libraries

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many public libraries there were in England in each year since 2010.

Stuart Andrew: This information is not collected by the Department. Arts Council England collects data from local authorities and publishes a basic dataset of information on public libraries in England. The libraries basic dataset 2021 shows the number of static libraries in England (statutory and non-statutory) as at 1 April 2010, 1 July 2016, 31 December 2019 and 31 December 2021. It can be found at: https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/search?query=basic+dataset&sort_by=titlesThe libraries basic dataset 2022 will be published by Arts Council England later this year.Annual library data are also collected by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) from local authorities across Great Britain and include the number of libraries (statutory and non-statutory). Access to these annual library data is available through subscription to CIPFA. The House of Commons Library subscribes to the CIPFA ‘stats+ public libraries statistics dashboard’ which includes figures for library service points.

Public Libraries

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the closing of the Libraries Taskforce in March 2020 on strategic planning for libraries.

Stuart Andrew: While the taskforce formally ended on 31 March 2020, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport provided a further year of funding for the team based at Arts Council England to manage the ongoing work funded through it, to convene a core group of library stakeholders, and to assist in the delivery of in upcoming strategic development opportunities. (Arts Council England is the national development agency for public libraries in England.)Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service and to think long-term and strategically as they plan and transform their library services. Libraries Deliver: Ambition for Public Libraries in England 2016 to 2021, together with other strategic planning toolkits previously published by the taskforce, remain relevant guidance documents to assist local authorities in delivering this duty.In September 2022, the Government appointed Baroness Sanderson of Welton as chairman of a new advisory panel to help develop a new strategy to make sure that public libraries are providing the best possible service for their communities. More detail can be found here. To date she has had numerous meetings with organisations with an interest in public libraries work, and has led two roundtable sessions. The first, on 13 January in Nottinghamshire, focused on the contribution public libraries make to cultural and creative enrichment and the second, on 27 January in Suffolk, discussed their contribution to health and wellbeing. A further seven roundtables will be held between February and May, in libraries across England, each focusing on a specific theme, based on the seven Strategic Outcomes in Libraries Deliver: Ambition for Public Libraries in England 2016 to 2021, plus sessions on governance and innovation.

Loneliness: Social Prescribing

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps is he taking to investigate the potential merits of social prescribing in combatting loneliness.

Stuart Andrew: We recognise the importance of social prescribing in tackling loneliness. Since the launch of the strategy, the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England have made great progress in improving the provision of social prescribing and there is growing evidence that social prescribing can help to reduce people's loneliness. Funding for social prescribing link workers through primary care has resulted in a robust support offer for recruitment, training, workforce development and service delivery. As of October 2022 there are 2,793 FTE Social Prescribing Link Workers in post and over 1.3 million referrals have been made to Social Prescribing as of November 2022.

Loneliness: Mental Health

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make an assessment of the potential correlation between ill mental health and loneliness.

Stuart Andrew: In June 2022 we published qualitative and quantitative research showing that there is a bidirectional link between loneliness and mental ill health. Our research found that people who experienced prior mental distress were 4.2 times more likely to experience subsequent chronic loneliness than those who did not experience earlier mental distress. Furthermore, those who reported prior chronic loneliness were 3.7 times more likely to experience subsequent mental distress than those who were not previously lonely. We continue to work closely with the Department of Health and Social Care to determine how we can prevent and tackle loneliness.

Loneliness: Employment

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of loneliness in the workplace.

Stuart Andrew: Employment can be a vital lifeline for social contact. As part of the cross-government loneliness strategy, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Campaign to End Loneliness established the Loneliness Employers Leadership Group to deepen our understanding of workplace loneliness and identify what employers can do. This work was taken forward as part of the Tackling Loneliness Network. In 2021, we commissioned the Campaign to End Loneliness to carry out a consultation with a wide network of businesses and produce a good practice guide on employers and loneliness.Government speaks regularly with business organisations, such as the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, on a range of issues including workplace wellbeing and how employers might look to improve it.In the coming months we will publish the fourth annual report on the loneliness strategy, including a commitment to work with BEIS to engage with the APPG for Tackling Loneliness and Connecting Communities on their recent inquiry into workplace loneliness.

Loneliness

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent progress she has made on the Government's loneliness strategy.

Stuart Andrew: Tackling loneliness remains a priority for the government. Over the past year we have reached millions of people through our ‘Lift Someone Out of Loneliness’ campaign. We have grown our Tackling Loneliness Network of organisations from across sectors, and published new research into loneliness and its impacts. We have also brought together Ministers across government to continue to drive forward action to tackle loneliness. In the coming months we will publish the fourth annual report on the loneliness strategy reflecting on progress made since 2018 and committing to government action to tackle loneliness over the next two years.

Voluntary Work: Health

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with (a) conservation and (b) other charities on (i) creating more volunteering opportunities for people with (A) dementia, (B) mental health challenges and (C) disabled people and (ii) the establishment of social prescribing programmes to help support people with health requirements volunteer.

Stuart Andrew: Volunteering is critical to a vibrant and resilient civil society. It benefits volunteers and the organisations involving them and has transformational impacts on beneficiaries and their communities. We want to see as many people getting involved and taking action on the causes that mean the most to them.DCMS is an active partner in the sector-led Vision for Volunteering, a ten-year initiative that aims to make volunteering more equitable, diverse and inclusive. We regularly engage with a range of charities and other volunteer-involving organisations to understand both the challenges and opportunities in relation to volunteering.In addition, we are specifically investing to support people to overcome barriers to volunteering. In 2021, DCMS launched the Volunteering Futures Fund which provides over £7 million, including match funding, to improve the accessibility of volunteering. As a result, thousands of young people, people with disabilities, those experiencing loneliness and other barriers have the opportunity to volunteer and help others.Social prescribing also has an important part to play in supporting people into volunteering. In 2021 and 2022, a number of DCMS arms length bodies, including Arts Council England, Historic England and Sport England, partnered with the National Academy for Social Prescribing to deliver the £1.8m Thriving Communities Programme, which supported 37 projects across England. Projects used the power of culture and heritage alongside nature, sport, health and financial support to benefit the wellbeing of communities most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Local Broadcasting: Television

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department's policy paper up next - the government’s vision for the broadcasting sector published on 28 April 2022, when she plans to launch a consultation on individual local television station licenses.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled up next - the government’s vision for the broadcasting sector published on 28 April 2022, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of postponing the launch of the consultation on individual local television station licenses on (a) businesses, (b) universities and (c) local communities.

Julia Lopez: The Government remains committed to extending the local television multiplex licence, which is currently due to expire on 25 November 2025. We also outlined our plans in the Broadcasting White Paper to consult on the renewal or relicensing of the 34 individual local television services at the same time.The Government recognises the important contribution and impact that local television services make to our broadcasting ecosystem and for those across the UK, particularly in their role disseminating relevant news and engaging with local communities.We will publish a formal consultation paper on the future of local TV in due course.

BBC Mid-Term Review

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what is her planned timetable for the BBC Mid-Term Review.

Julia Lopez: In May 2022, DCMS launched the Mid-Term Review to assess, at the half-way point of the Charter period, how effectively the governance and regulation arrangements of the BBC are performing and whether any reforms are necessary.We have now consulted a wide range of stakeholders, including Ofcom and the BBC, and are working through the feedback received to help us develop our conclusions. We will soon start to consult the BBC, Ofcom and the Devolved Administrations on potential conclusions, as required by the review’s Terms of Reference. The Charter specifies that the review must take place between 2022 and 2024 and we will set out more detail on the timetable in due course.

Local Press

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support local newspapers.

Julia Lopez: The Government is committed to supporting local and regional newspapers as vital pillars of communities and local democracy. They play an essential role in holding power to account, keeping the public informed of local issues and providing reliable, high-quality information.However, as the independent Cairncross Review into the future of journalism identified, society is increasingly moving online and local news publishers are facing significant challenges in transitioning to sustainable digital business models.The Government supported the majority of Cairncross recommendations and has taken them forward through a range of fiscal and regulatory interventions. This has included the delivery of the £2 million Future News Fund; the zero rating of VAT on e-newspapers; the extension of a 2017 business rates relief on local newspaper office space until 2025; the publication of the Online Media Literacy Strategy; and our work through the Mid-Term Review of the BBC Charter, exploring how the BBC seeks to act as a complement to, rather than a substitute for, local commercial news outlets. The Government was also pleased to see the BBC conduct a thorough review of the Local Democracy Reporting Service in 2020, as recommended by the Cairncross Review. As set out in our response to the Review, we would support any efforts by the BBC to grow the scheme.Most importantly, we are introducing a new, pro-competition regime for digital markets. The regime, which aims to address the far-reaching power of the biggest tech firms, will help rebalance the relationship between publishers and the online platforms on which they increasingly rely. This will make an important contribution to the sustainability of the press.I am pleased that the DCMS Select Committee has also looked into this issue in detail. We will continue to consider all possible options in the interests of promoting and sustaining the sector, including carefully reviewing the recommendations made in their report.

Attorney General

Attorney General: Equality

Chris Stephens: To ask the Attorney General, what steps they are taking to ensure that their Department complies with section 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code; and whether the monitoring data gathered for that purpose is shared with relevant trade unions.

Michael Tomlinson: The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) has a shared HR service with the Government Legal Department (GLD). All AGO staff are asked to self-declare their personal sensitive information on the HR Information system, as per section 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code. Negotiations with the trade unions in respect of changes to HR practices or policies would normally be conducted by GLD with AGO adopting the final agreement. A link to the Civil Service statistics can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/civil-service-statistics